Florence flooding felt around the county

Fayetteville Observer (NC)

Sept. 16--In Stedman, Sandy Creek was way over its banks, streets were becoming almost impassable and water had surrounded Homes.

Eighty-year old Virginia Kolar, who lives on Second Street, said she wasn't concerned about the potential for flooding, even though her yard resembled a lake.

"God will take care of me," said Kolar, who has lived in Stedman since 1969. Her two sons live nearby, and a generator in the garage was providing electricity.

"I'm just not the worrying type," Kolar said.

Deputy Fire Chief Tim Mitchell said some roads were impassable and others soon would be as the driving rains from the remnants of Hurricane Florence continued to pound Stedman and the rest of the Cape Fear region.

A FEMA swift-water rescue crew, Task Force 2 out of California, is stationed at the Stedman Fire Department.

Already, the team has been sent to two rescues and expects more trouble to follow. On Saturday, a passerby reported seeing a car go off the road and into a swift-moving creek on Clinton Road in Sampson County. Dennis Cross, chief of the 16-member task force, said his crew saw a tire sticking up from the water, but the current was so fast that rescuers couldn't reach it by boat.

The other rescue happened later Saturday in almost the same spot. Cross said the task force pulled a man from a vehicle that was nearly submerged. The man was fine, Cross said.

Mitchell said he was concerned because the nearest shelter -- at Mac Williams Middle School-- is full and Stedman homes are going to flood, perhaps worse than two years ago during Hurricane Matthew.

Mitchell said many Stedman residents are in the shelter.

"I think Matthew was a wake up call for a lot of them," he said.

More flooding

Severe flooding was occurring on Hummingbird Place near the Food Lion in Eastover. The road was almost impassable, and Tim Hale said he expected his two-story home would be flooded within two hours.

Hale had a pump in his yard, but there was no way it could compete with the rising water that was nearly to his home's foundation.

"It's a little out of hand right now," he said.

But Hale had no intention of leaving.

"We're chilling. We'll handle it, he said.

About 2 p.m., police blocked off Campbell Avenue and South Cool Spring Street in Fayetteville because Blounts Creek has overflowed it's banks.

Hurricane Matthew caused extensive flooding in this area, including about 90 Habitat for Humanity homes.

A man who did not give his name said he was out of his house on Sessoms Street for about a year after Hurricane Matthew flooded it in October 2016. The creek runs directly behind his house and appeared to be rising fast

The man said he was just leaving his home to stay with family in Elizabethtown. He said police came to his house Saturday and told him to evacuate.

A deep pool of water stood in the street near his house.

Police began going door-to-door on Sessoms Street, telling people it was time to get out. Mark Nash and Norman Davis stood on Nash's porch, getting ready to leave.

Both men said their homes were flooded by Hurricane Matthew. It took about a year for repairs so they could get back in.

Now they worry that the same thing will happen all over again.

"If they let us rebuild it, I'm not building it," Davis said. "I'd rather go elsewhere. That's twice in two years."

During Hurricane Matthew, Davis didn't have flood insurance and had paid off his mortgage. Now he said, he's got a $75,000 mortgage -- and flood insurance.

Staff writer Greg Barnes can be reached at [email protected] or 910-486-3525.

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