- Neighbors express frustration with the perceived inaction on the flooding crisis.
- A Taylor County administrator acknowledges drainage issues but suggests limited plans for immediate relief.
- Watch the video to see drone footage of the flooded road and farmland.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
Some people in Taylor County are bracing for more flooding.
"Two months later, I was met with images like this, and it just hasn't gone away."
I'm Lentheus Chaney, your neighborhood reporter in Perry, where frustrated neighbors say the county has failed to provide a solution.
Neighbor Joshua Felder moved to a 10-acre home off Turner Road two years ago and has struggled with flooding ever since. He says it ruined his Mustang’s engine, and neighbors often have to park on the roadside to avoid the water.
"Nobody should be having to, you know, when you buy a home, also start looking at 60- to 80-thousand-dollar vehicles to add. That’s not exactly the good time," Felder said.
And the problems keep getting worse. Mail and packages can’t be delivered, and local cattle owners are cut off from their animals by flooded fields. Felder says the flooding also makes it nearly impossible to ship or receive materials, hurting his small business.
"You could be stuck in your house—and I have—for weeks, even months at a time, where I could not go get food, I could not go get, you know, medicine or packages or anything like that. I was stuck there and just had to kind of do with what I had," Felder said.
I reached out to the county administrator for comment regarding the flooding concerns and whether there is the possibility of a long-term infrastructure improvement plan along Turner Road.
In a statement, she said in part:
"It has not become evident that Turner Road in and of itself has contributed to the area flooding to any degree. Poor drainage and a lack of maintaining privately owned drainage paths would necessarily contribute to excessive flooding. Nonetheless, Taylor County is currently evaluating the cost to elevate the lower portions of Turner Road to provide a clear, dry ingress and egress path for area residents. It is not expected this [will] improve the overall situation beyond the direct roadway."
Felder says if he had known about the flooding, he never would have bought his home. Now, he feels trapped. In Perry, Lentheus Chaney, ABC27.
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