WASHINGTON CITY – The Washington City Fire Department responded to two homes on East Autumn Drive in the Coral Canyon subdivision after it was reported that both backyards were beginning to flood.
At approximately 6:45 p.m., after a rainstorm blew through parts of Washington County, a large amount of water began to run off the hill behind the homes and accumulated, forming a large pond.
Washington City Firefighter John Brian said the low area behind the homes that had filled with rain wasn’t moving, either drainage was unavailable or had been clogged. So instead of moving along and draining away from the homes, the water began to seep through the cinder block fence and into the two backyards.
The fire department responded with two pumps, one per home, and began pumping water out into the street while also creating trenches in the backyards to direct the water out into the street.
The homes affected were on the 2900 block of East Autumn Drive. The owners of one of the homes were not at home when the flooding happened. Neighbor Georgine Bills said someone told her about the flooding in the backyard and she rushed over.
When she arrived at the home, she said, “all I saw were neighbors with shovels and brooms.”
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Videocast by Michael Flynn, St. George News
ValRae Chamberlain said she and others had gotten into the backyard of the home and began to push the water into the swimming pool so it wouldn’t get into the home. While doing so the fire department arrived and a pump was set up to drain the pool so the neighbors could fill it while others made drainage trenches.
While no water made it into the first home, the second home wasn’t as lucky.
The neighbors and firefighters did what they could for a neighboring home but an estimated 1.5 to 2 inches of water and mud made it into the majority of the home.
Pat Patterson, of Rainbow International, a cleaning and restoration company that had been called to the flooded home, estimated damages to the interior of the home could be as much as $15,000.
Fletcheri Lowe, the homeowner, was home at the time the flooding began.
Both homes were swarming with firefighters and neighbors doing what they could to help clean the home in the aftermath of the flooding.
“We’ve got lots of neighbors helping,” one woman at the scene said.
Click on photo to enlarge it, then use your left-right arrow keys to cycle through the gallery.
Flooding along the 2900 block of Autumn Drive, Coral Canyon Community, Washington, Utah, July 20, 2013 | Photo by Mori Kessler, St. George News Flooding along the 2900 block of Autumn Drive, Coral Canyon Community, Washington, Utah, July 20, 2013 | Photo by Mori Kessler, St. George News Flooding along the 2900 block of Autumn Drive, Coral Canyon Community, Washington, Utah, July 20, 2013 | Photo by Mori Kessler, St. George News Flooding along the 2900 block of Autumn Drive, Coral Canyon Community, Washington, Utah, July 20, 2013 | Photo by Mori Kessler, St. George News Flooding along the 2900 block of Autumn Drive, Coral Canyon Community, Washington, Utah, July 20, 2013 | Photo by Mori Kessler, St. George News Flooding along the 2900 block of Autumn Drive, Coral Canyon Community, Washington, Utah, July 20, 2013 | Photo by Mori Kessler, St. George News Flooding along the 2900 block of Autumn Drive, Coral Canyon Community, Washington, Utah, July 20, 2013 | Photo by Mori Kessler, St. George News Flooding along the 2900 block of Autumn Drive, Coral Canyon Community, Washington, Utah, July 20, 2013 | Photo by Mori Kessler, St. George News Flooding along the 2900 block of Autumn Drive, Coral Canyon Community, Washington, Utah, July 20, 2013 | Photo by Mori Kessler, St. George News Flooding along the 2900 block of Autumn Drive, Coral Canyon Community, Washington, Utah, July 20, 2013 | Photo by Mori Kessler, St. George News Flooding along the 2900 block of Autumn Drive, Coral Canyon Community, Washington, Utah, July 20, 2013 | Photo by Mori Kessler, St. George News Flooding through ditch behind homes on Autumn Drive in Coral Canyon community, Washington, Utah, July 20, 2013 | Photo by Mori Kessler, St. George News Flooding along the 2900 block of Autumn Drive in Coral Canyon community, Washington, Utah, July 20, 2013 | Photo by Mori Kessler, St. George News Flooding along the 2900 block of Autumn Drive, Coral Canyon Community, Washington, Utah, July 20, 2013 | Photo by Mori Kessler, St. George News Washington City Firefighter Clint Nelson overlooking the pond on the other side of the brick fence, Washington, Utah, July 20, 2013 | Photo by Michael Flynn, St. George News
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Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2013, all rights reserved.
What did “editing” the address accomplish? Very easy to find the address by owners name! If you want to be secretive about the news just quit reporting it!!!
Dear dear Ken,
Please allow me to explain. Simply – things were moving fast and furious yesterday. A few of our readers – friends – suggested that providing an address in a situation where the owners were out of town could make their home more vulnerable. Please understand that sometimes we must respond in a moment, without the benefit of long pause to ponder. In that moment we felt the point was well taken and it was simple to bend to that. No “secrecy” from our STGnews friends. We feel badly you inferred that. Our genuine aim is to keep you informed in the moment, as things emerge, and give you opportunity to discuss what affects Southern Utahns. And, frankly, we listen to you.
Sincerely,
ST. GEORGE NEWS | STGnews.com
Joyce Kuzmanic
Editor in Chief
That sucks…but the real story here is that someone named their kid Fletcheri…welcome to Utah!
thats what i call neighbors.. woot woot.. nice neighborhood to live in i’m sure.. up here in apple valley, a fire happened in the wash next to someones home and every car that passed by stop and ran and grabbed shovels and waterhoses must’ve been 20 people out there.. sum neighborhoods people really do just say, “not my problem”… i’ve seen it.. mark that as two great neighborhoods to live in..
i didn’t know our firemen were “floodmen” too.. their job is never done i suppose.. ps. don’t ya just love it when people scournfully say something to you? how would you like to be in their family, i bet their kids never got “training” just sarcasm.. how rude to bark like that, they could’ve just simply told you your error.. sometimes things just get past us.. i haven’t found a perfect person yet… their comments act like they have no kindness towards their fellow man.. i am sorry you guys take on such lippy people sometimes.. trolls.
Phenomenal pictures Mr. Kessler. Well done.