Flooding Creek Threatens Nearby Homes

Homes near Skiatook are in jeopardy. Most residents were evacuated when the water started rising on Thursday morning.  News on 6 anchor Jennifer Loren reports the city hopes no one's left trying to wait it out.

"Because we were already saturated and everything was full already it came up really fast this time," said Skiatook Fire Chief Chuck Williamson.

Really fast and really high that is.

A park that sits right in the center of the town of Skiatook is under at least five feet of water and it's more like a lake than a park.

People are using their boats just to get across town or to work on securing their property.

Lori Vanderlinden and her family moved everything they could to higher ground before the rising creek waters swallowed their yard.  All they can do is watch as the water continues to creep up the side of their home.

"We just put brand new central heat and air in here and we've already lost everything under the house so hopefully it won't get in our house. But if it does we have our lives so we can't ask for more than that," said Vanderlinden.

But she's one of the lucky ones compared to the owners who were forced to evacuate as water poured into their living rooms, making them islands in the new Skiatook Lake.

"We're going to homes and evacuating residents from homes that have been here a while and haven't seen it this bad and were trying to stick it out," said Williamson.

The Oklahoma Highway Patrol has been using their air boat to help with evacuations and to continuously check on people who refuse to evacuate, people like Sean Owens' brother.

"I'm waiting to see if they can talk my brother into coming out of my mom's place. He's flooded out back there and he keeps moving his trailer up trying to stay dry," said Owens.

In town there's no need to obey stop signs, high water signs might as well say turn around.

Skiatook and Sperry schools have cancelled classes for Friday because so many roads are impassable.

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