Residents on the city's Northwest Side saw heavy rains this week — and then they saw their homes flooded. As they clean up the mess on Dhaka View Street, some say the lack of city maintenance in their area is to blame.
City of San Antonio Public Works spokesman Paul Berry said that stretch of Leon Creek near the flooded homes underwent a major cleanup last month and was mowed in May. He said creeks and streams across the city are on a constant rotating calendar for cleanup and mowing, but the neighborhood is in a flood plain and there have been significant, recent rains.
Resident Joann Felan said this is second time she and her husband Juan have seen flooding in recent years. Her living room was full of cleaning equipment. She is making plans to clean up, make repairs and move out.
"The adjuster just left and I have another one coming out later on today and hopefully, talking with the city also, we want to make sure they do their part as far as cleaning up all the debris that was left... We just need help as far as getting that all cleaned out," Felan said.
Felan's neighbors, the Hickses, were also still cleaning up two days after floodwaters entered a few homes on the street. Janett Hicks said the flooding happened suddenly around 8 a.m. Tuesday.
"I woke up, my neighbor called me and told me it was flooding. So, I came down the stairs because this is a two-story and everything downstairs was floating and I said what's going on here. My car's underwater," she said.
The Hickses and Felans both stayed in the upper stories of their homes until the floodwaters resided, leaving behind mud and debris. The Hickses did not have flood insurance, but plan to cleanup, make repairs and stay.
Janett Hicks' husband Darrell had completely removed water and mud from the downstairs floor, but some furniture had to be tossed.
"We were able to salvage some things, but we threw away quite a bit, the city came and picked it up already," he said.
Hicks pointed to water marks near halfway up his backyard fence where Leon Creek squeezed through and entered the front and back doors of his home.
A backyard deck was pulled a bit off the back off the house by the floodwaters.
Both families were doing their best to air out their homes in hopes of warding off mold.
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