SEMINOLE COUNTY, Fla. – Hurricane season is coming up, and cities across Central Florida are taking steps to make sure they’re prepared.
In Winter Springs, our News 6 team spotted crews working on a Gee Creek Stabilization project near Moss Park.
About a month ago, city staff showed us the design and their plan to prevent erosion and debris from blocking the flow of water. Their goal is to slow down water when the weir on Lake Catherine is opened up and reinforce the banks with sheet piling.
Helen Goodson has lived through a worst-case scenario when water from the creek didn’t flow where it should. On Friday, she showed our crew where her home was flooded after Hurricane Ian.
Goodson explained that water from the creek behind her house flowed into the street, which was also flooded. She told News 6 reporter Catherine Silver she lost everything.
“We had to be evacuated by a boat by the fire department. And when we initially called it like 4 in the morning, they said it was too dangerous for them to come. So, they didn’t come until maybe 8 or 9 in the morning,” Goodson said.
Goodson invited us inside her house too and showed us how it’s still gutted three years later. She pointed out where the drywall was cut out and where cabinets and appliances were gone.
“That was my closet,” Goodson said as she stood in what used to be her bedroom. “I had three pairs of shoes left when it was all done.”
Goodson, who said she loved to entertain in her home, only has memories left. She was going to remodel, but is now waiting to see if a grant will pay for the house to be torn down.
“Winter Springs offered the opportunity for a possible grant to tear down the house so that FEMA wouldn’t have to pay for flood insurance again, and again, and again,” Goodson said. “The city manager told me that within five years, my house would flood again. And, I did just get a letter from the city saying hurricane season is here, make sure you have flood insurance, but what are they going to insure? There’s nothing left.”
More than 20 inches of rain fell in some areas during Hurricane Ian. Officials have called it a 500-year flood event and say damage of that magnitude is unlikely.
City staff have told News 6 before that they’ve been working to address the issues they have faced in the past, to prevent water from backing up into people’s homes and flooding roadways.
“If you listen to any of our residents that come for public comment, they clearly understand what these types of projects will do to help them,” public communications officer Matt Reeser told News 6 in April. “You’re never going to 100% stop water from coming or prevent flooding 100%, but you can do a lot of things to mitigate the impact that it has on people, and I think that is what our residents are looking for. Just for us to do these kinds of proactive measures, so that we don’t have the type of issues we had during an Ian.”
When News 6 checked in on the progress of the Gee Creek stabilization project Friday, Reeser said crews discovered some damage to a nearby storm pipe during construction that have delayed repairs to a mid-June completion, if all else goes according to plan.
The City Commission also recently approved a contract to remove debris from creeks, which should begin soon. A sediment removal plan is expected to go before the Commission on June 9.
The city of Oviedo is also working on a creek clear out project ahead of hurricane season. Paul Yeargain, assistant city engineer, spoke with our News 6 team about the routine maintenance underway in Sweetwater Creek.
“Each year, what we try to do is walk through the creek. We have a contractor do that, and they remove any hard vegetation that may be falling or about to fall. We’ll remove that and any debris just to clean it up, kind of maximize the area in case we get rain,” Yeargain said.
The city says the work, which is happening approximately 500 feet north of Franklin Street towards DeLeon Street should be done next week.
“It’s one of the few actual creeks in Oviedo, but a good chunk of the city drains up through Sweetwater Creek, and then it takes it all the way up to Lake Jesup,” Yeargain said.
This week, the Council also gave their approval to borrow $9.5 million that will be used for stormwater projects. Yeargain said that money, along with funds that will start to build from a recent rate hike, will allow them to get a jumpstart on projects throughout Oviedo.
“We looked at a 10-year plan, and we identified all the projects that are listed,” Yeargain said. “Infrastructure continues to age, and everything has a lifespan, if you will. So, as things get older and we have to replace them or repair them or do something else to remedy that.”
Yeargain added that residents are usually pleased when they see the city is taking a proactive approach.
“We’re trying to stay ahead of things,” he said.