Residents Stranded By Flooding

Monday, June 11th 2007, 8:41 pm

By: News On 6

Flood waters in Washington County forced the evacuation of a Dewey trailer park on Monday. The News On 6â€™s Ashli Sims reports boats were sent in to rescue residents and News On 6 cameras were onboard.

The Lake Shore Trailer Park looked like it was in the middle of a lake on Monday. Some mobile homes seemed poised to float away; others were isolated on islands surrounded by flood waters.

"Whenever I came out, it was not even up to the street. But my friend over here was fishing and I went over there, and it kept on getting closer to us. So we had to leave," 13-year-old resident Brittany Tatum said.

Coon Creek was so high in some places road signs were obscured by the water, and an entire playground was washed out.

With rivers for roads, emergency vehicles were traded in for rescue boats. Volunteer firefighter Lloyd Guatney says they've brought about seven boat loads of people out of the mobile home park.

"They needed to evacuate just in case the water came up higher, and they needed some kind of medical attention or something or another. They wouldn't be able to get to them quickly," Washington County firefighter Lloyd Guatney said.

From the rescue boat you get a whole new perspective on the water's wrath. Backyards, porches, fence lines flooded, and as if the water wasn't enough, another element, fire gutted a home. Despite the devastation, some remained optimistic.

"Looks like the water is receding at a fairly good rate right now, so maybe they'll be able to get back into their homes by tomorrow," said Guatney.

For now, both Lake Shore and Meadow Creek Trailer Parks are blocked off, because of the flooding. If you don't have to be there, Dewey police are asking people to stay away until the waters recedes.

Watch the video: Residents Rescued After Washington County Flooding

Related stories:

6/11/2007 Flooding From 3,000 Feet

6/11/2007 Flooding Causes Evacuation Of Homes

6/11/2007 Flood Victims