The Levy County lime rock pit became waterfront property during the rain storm.
By Terry Witt – Spotlight Senior Reporter
A no-name rain storm that lacked high winds and media sex appeal caused substantial flood damage in western and southern Levy County over a five-day period last week.
The damage is coming to light as flood waters begin to recede.
David Peaton, assistant director of the Levy County Department of Emergency Management said the storm dropped about 19 inches of rain west of U.S. 19. Heavy rains also hit other areas of the county.
Levy County road crews and building department employees are continuing to assess damage. Anyone who believes they have sustained damage from the storm is asked go to www.levydisaster.com and open the link – report storm damage.
Levydisaster.com is the Levy County Department of Emergency Management website.
A large sinkhole formed on Palm Street as a result flooding rains.
Peaton said there are several levels of disaster assistance the county may be eligible to receive. It’s too early to say how much federal and state assistance might come to the county.
The easiest assistance to secure – if there is such a thing as easy to obtain state or federal storm assistance – would be in the form of low interest loans from the Small Business Administration for damaged homes and businesses.
The county plans to send a damage assessment to the state at the close of business Thursday in hopes of being declared a federal disaster area. State officials will then travel to Levy County to look at areas impacted by flooding.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and President Trump will use the information to determine if Public Assistance can be obtained by county government to repair damaged roads, bridges, culverts and other public facilities.
The most difficult federal money to obtain would be Public Assistance for a disaster declaration requiring $26.5 million in damages statewide. FEMA could then provide additional types of grant funding for storm recovery.
Levy County Road Department employees began placing signs on flooded roads Friday to prevent motorists from driving through water that was too deep for most cars and trucks. They were busy almost 24/7 over the weekend.
A warning ribbon is stretched across an unidentified county road to keep motorists from driving into problems.
Peaton said county work crews are currently assessing damage to county roads. Robert Boulette, county development director, is assessing damage to homes and businesses in the impacted areas.
Commissioner Lilly Rooks said a mobile home park went under water in the storm. Many areas in the Rosewood, Gulf Hammock, Inglis and Yankeetown experienced flooding.
Flood waters surround this mobile home at an unidentified location.
County Commission Chairman John Meeks pointed out in Tuesday’s county commission meeting that the flooding of a paved road can cause damage beneath the road surface that sometimes can’t be seen by drivers. The county plans to examine the hidden damage to determine costs.
A warning ribbon is stretched across an unidentified county road to keep motorists from driving into problems.
Peaton said a lot of people asked why networks like The Weather Channel weren’t covering the disaster. The main reason was the lack of wind associated with what turned out to be a major rain event. It wasn’t a very sexy storm event for media coverage.
This particular rain event isn’t unheard of in Levy County, but it is uncommon. Heavy rains from Wednesday to Sunday didn’t allow soils to absorb the water. Flooding damaged public and private roads, water wells, air conditioning systems and the A/C duct work under some mobile homes.
A river of water flows down a dirt road in Devils Hammock Wildlife Management Area. The conservation area runs along the edge of State Road 24, which was flooded and closed for a time.
Boulette has been traveling the county west of U.S. 19 to assess damage to structures impacted by flooding. His damage report will be part of the county assessment electronically mailed to the state Thursday afternoon.
Peaton said all the county roads are open for traffic at this point. The water is receding but he said the Palm Street Bridge in Inglis was severely damaged by the flooding.
A car got stuck or flooded out trying to cross this unidentified flooded intersection on Hudson Street in Inglis.
“There are still a lot of roads with water on them, but we aren’t encountering any roads we can’t get through,” Peaton said.
Meeks told commissioners he thought the county could reach the threshold for state disaster funds to repair road damage, but he indicated there is probably damage well beyond county roadways.
Photographs courtesy of Levy County Emergency Management; Posted August 22, 2019
