Cleanup underway at Volusia County flooded homes

Flood causes $1.5M in damage, flooded 62 homes

PORT ORANGE, Fla. – Residents are now calling restoration companies to get all the water out of their homes before the next round of rain starts.

[PICS: Severe weather hits Central Florida | VIDEO: Sky 6 over flooding sites | MORE: Flooding causes $1.5M in damage | Live radar | Hurricane App | Storm Tracking App | Get Storm Pins App | Timesaver Traffic ]

"You can see we still have 3 to 4 inches of water standing in the floor in this lady's house," said Kindell Parker, operations manager for United Water Restoration.

Parker showed Local 6 just one of the many homes that he worked on that got flooded on Monroe Street.

"We'll pack all this furniture out, set dehumidifiers in here, so we can start the drying process," said Parker.

It's a process that homeowner Mark Tomlinon said needs to start right away.

"This is an imperative that we get this work done," said Tomlinson. "There's bacteria in the water. It's from the ground. It's come from outside to inside, so it's really not safe for people to be in the houses in this point in time," said Parker.

Parker then showed Margaret Spry's house.

"She had about 8 to 10 inches of water standing in her house last night," said Parker.

But Thursday, it's finally starting to dry out.

"We've got eight dehumidifiers and four air scrubbers. The air scrubbers are to make sure the air quality stays safe. Our main concern right now is the safety and getting people back into their homes," said Parker.

The Better Business Bureau said residents need to be careful when selecting restoration companies.  They said to always contact your insurance company first, never pay up front, never pay in cash and always sign an agreement.

Volusia County officials say free sandbags are available for residents at the following locations:

  • South Daytona: 746 Reed Canal Road
  • Daytona Beach: 950 Bellevue Road
  • New Smyrna Beach: 124 Industrial Park Blvd.
  • Port Orange: 4200 Ridgewood Ave. and 6027 Central Park Blvd.
  • Ormond Beach: 501 N. Orchard St. until 3:30 p.m.
  • Edgewater: Mango Lake Park, 800 block of Mango Tree Drive and Fire Station 57, 2628 Hibiscus Drive

There is a chance of rain early Thursday, followed by a mostly cloudy overnight. The overnight low will drop to 72 degrees.

Friday there is a 60 percent chance of rain as more moisture moved across Florida from the East.  The high will be 88 degrees in Orlando.

Saturday and Sunday both will have a high of 88 degrees and a 50 percent chance of rain.

Watch Local 6 News and stay with ClickOrlando.com for more on this story.


About the Author:

Loren Korn is a native Texan who joined the News 6 team as a reporter in May 2014. She was born and raised in Houston and graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a degree in Journalism.

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