Flood victims meet with officials

Web posted July 13, 2000

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By Heidi Coryell
Staff Writer

Michael Rush says that, in the 28 years Butler Creek has been overflowing into south Augusta homes, he and his neighbors have resigned themselves to the flood waters that accompany heavy rains.

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``We know how to take that mattress outside and dry it out,'' Mr. Rush told an audience of about 50 other homeowners and local and state officials who attended a meeting he organized Wednesday. ``We know how to take that carpet outside and squeeze it out.''

Mr. Rush, who is president of the Meadowbrook Homeowners Association, represented residents from his subdivision and about 23 other neighborhoods that joined in a show of unity at the Gracewood Community Center.

The meeting was attended by two state senators, a state representative and many local officials. Flood victims shared their stories in hopes of bringing awareness to flooding problems that continue to be exacerbated by rapid development on the south side of the county.

Homeowners from areas near Tobacco, Windsor Spring and Deans Bridge roads, Meadowbrook Drive, and Pinnacle Place were among those who brought comments, questions, photographs and video footage of past flooding from Butler, Spirit and Rocky creeks.

County officials emphasized to homeowners that a $105,000 emergency relief grant approved Monday by Gov. Roy Barnes will be made available countywide.

The guidelines to receive immediate flood assistance money were approved unanimously earlier in the day by the Augusta-Richmond County Commission and were almost identical to recommended guidelines submitted Tuesday to local emergency officials by the Georgia Emergency Management Agency.

The adopted requirements aim to provide assistance for those with the greatest demonstrated need, mainly those without flood insurance or whose insurance does not cover temporary housing and other immediate needs. The maximum grant award for a household is up to $5,000. Homeowners can apply for flood relief at the local EMA office.

But the south Augusta flood victims told officials they were more interested in long-term solutions than short-term relief. They asked for stricter ordinances to deter commercial development and requested improvements to creek basins that have historically flooded their residences.

County Engineer Doug Cheek said outdated flood maps from 1987 coupled with rapid development in south Augusta are likely contributors to the expanding flood problems.

The flood maps are updated by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, not local officials.

County Commissioner Andy Cheek, Mayor Bob Young and Mayor Pro Tem Willie Mays told residents that a $7.6 million project to dredge and reinforce Butler Creek is fairly low on the Department of Public Works' priority list. The officials encouraged residents to call commissioners and ask for the project to be moved up.

``Water crosses district lines, and that means problems cross district lines,'' Mr. Mays said. ``We're not going to correct everything this county has done, but we can make a difference.''

Reach Heidi Coryell at (706) 823-3215.