lcramer posted on March 11, 2011 12:44
When the Blanchard River crested at 16.42 feet on March 1, the rising water line marked the sixth worst flood in Findlay's history.
This is the fourth flood in the past four years to make Findlay's top 10. The rush of river water drove some people from their homes to the Agency on Aging, where the Red Cross set up their emergency shelter.
“We had one instance where a single mother, living with her six children basically lost everything to the flood," Robert Gaskill, Red Cross volunteer, said. "People would come in here with a look of desperation, soaking wet; they had nothing, not even dry clothes.
"The consequences of the flood have a face and it’s the desperate expression of all the people who have been affected.”
Red Cross volunteer Gwen Pahl knows firsthand the effects of flooding. After completely rebuilding her house following the August 2007 flood, she can relate to the overwhelming feeling that flooding brings.
“When it happened to me the first time, we had no idea what to do," Pahl said. “For the people that have done this several times now, they just feel a sense of distress.
"You can’t sell your home and move somewhere else because you can’t get the market value out of it. So, you’re pretty much forced to stay in that same home that’s going to flood again and again and there’s just no way of getting out of it.”
Pahl also sees the effects as being worse this time of year because of the cold weather.
“With this being a winter flood, it’s more devastating because you’re seeing a lot of people whose basements have been flooded had water heaters and furnaces down there and now they’re not working," Pahl said. "So, they can essentially live in their homes, but they have no heat or hot water: the necessities of life.
"We had people calling just wanting to know if there was somewhere they could take a shower."
Junior Sid Hoover, whose family spent six months rebuilding their house after the 2007 flood, was struck again by the rising river water last week.
"The entire floor in my room was soaked and the couch got destroyed because it absorbed all the water," Hoover said. "Everything in the garage was ruined by mud and it's going to take a long time to clean off.
"It honestly makes me mad because when this happened three years ago, they formed a committee to do something about it, but nothing has been done."
Besides causing damage to homes, flooding also hit downtown businesses.
Greg Kuhlman, owner of Kuhlman's Body Repair on North Main Street, has experienced flooding multiple times.
"We had enough warning to move everything out in time, but the office still got 2.5 feet of water in it," Kuhlman said. "We'll probably be closed for around 10 days and we'll lose potential customers over that time span.
"We'll probably lose anywhere from $10,000-$20,000. The flooding has hurt the downtown business climate severely. A lot of businesses have closed down because they can't sustain the continued negative economic impact."