Sep 20, 2008 11:51 am US/Central
Indiana Flood Victims Allowed To Return Home
LAKE STATION, Ind. (Post-Tribune) ―
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Flooding swamps Munster, Ind.
Vi/CBS
Residents forced out of their houses after torrential rains caused Deep River to flow over its banks were allowed to return home for the first time Friday.
Surging flood water prompted Lake Station authorities to order the evacuation of 500 to 700 people five days ago. The affected area has been under a 6 p.m. to 7 a.m. curfew since then, Mayor Keith Soderquist said.
After showing their IDs to Lake Station police, homeowners such as Louis Gonzalez spent hours surveying the damage to their property.
"It's a total mess," the 61-year-old Gonzalez said after entering into his house in the 2800 block of Arizona Street. Water lines on the walls indicate that the main level of his home had 16 inches of flood water.
"I've never seen rain like what we had last weekend," said Gonzalez, who has lived in Lake Station for three decades.
Soderquist said electric and other utility services will not be restored to 200 heavily damaged homes until the structural integrity of each house is evaluated by city inspectors. The mayor said homeowners should contact the city to arrange the inspections.
About 125 homes and 80 mobile homes in the Riverside Mobile Home Park were completely submerged at one point.
Soderquist said another 200 west side residents got water in their basements.
Gonzalez's neighbor, Damaso Serrano, 89, got two feet of water in his basement. His son, Jose, set up a gas-powered generator Friday to pump it out.
"The Red Cross took down our address but other than that we haven't talked to anybody," Jose Serrano said.
City officials, including the mayor and members of the police and fire departments, have been in the neighborhood helping with the clean-up.
Soderquist said a representative of the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency toured the area affected by the flooding to assess the damage on Thursday.
The city, Soderquist said, also placed 28 large trash bins obtained from the Lake County Solid Waste District throughout the flooded area.
He said a disposal center for hazardous products will be set up at Columbus Park on Monday.
(Source: Sun-Times News Group Wire © Chicago Sun-Times 2009. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
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