US | Mississippi Makeshift Levees Protect Homes From Flooding Mississippi residents take matters into their own hands By John Johnson Posted May 19, 2011 5:51 PM CDT Copied A levee protects a home surrounded by floodwater from the Yazoo River near Vicksburg, Mississippi. (Getty Images) See 5 more photos Some homeowners are putting up a fight against the mighty Mississippi and its tributaries, notes Popular Science. The AP and Getty have remarkable images of homes near Vicksburg shielded by makeshift levees. It's "a testament to the human instinct to protect hearth and home," notes Clay Dillow. Click to read about the first fatality linked to the Mississippi flooding. Read These Next Putin faces unfamiliar terrain of shouted questions. Guests find summit document on hotel printer. Kristi Noem is catching some flak over her new home. Russia's foreign minister had quite a sweatshirt. Report an error