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In Depth: Six Months After Escambia County’s Flood

It’s been six months since the devastating April floods in Escambia County, and the effects are “staggering”, according to the county.

One resident lost her life when she drowned along Highway 29 near Burger King in Cantonment.  Hundreds were displaced from their homes and entire neighborhoods were torn apart by the rising waters. As of the end of September, 466 Escambia County residents are still displaced from their homes as a result of the devastating floods. In all, the floods caused an estimated $90 million in damage to the county’s infrastructure and facilities.

The science tells the story. The National Weather Service estimates show that more than 25 inches of rain fell in 24 hours – the highest amount of rainfall recorded since 1879. The heaviest rains soaking the urbanized areas of the county, south of Well Line Road. An astounding six inches of rain was recorded in a single hour at the airport in the southeast area of the City of Pensacola between 9 and 10 p.m.

Today, Escambia County is hard at work repairing roads and bridges so that they are better and stronger than they were before the storm.  Almost 80 percent of the 2,318 infrastructure damage sites identified after April’s flood have already been addressed or repaired. An additional 17 percent of the damage sites are currently under design or repair.

County official credit the Local Option Sales Tax (LOST) with allowing Escambia County to move quickly to return streets, parks and facilities to near-normal conditions without having to wait for federal assistance. The county commission was able to authorize a $10 million interest-free loan from the LOST III Fund to the Disaster Recovery Fund to kick-start recovery efforts.

From past experience, county leaders said they knew that a substantial portion of the recovery costs would come due prior to receipt of any reimbursements from the Federal Emergency Management Administration (FEMA) or State Department of Emergency Management (DEM). In preparation for these necessary expenses, the Board approved the interfund loan this past July to help in covering the large costs associated with ongoing recovery. To finance the recovery, the cash will be transferred from the LOST III Fund when needed and repaid when FEMA and State DEM reimbursements are made.

The April floods impacted nearly all aspects of our community, from individuals and families to businesses, the economy, parks, public buildings and infrastructure. In turn, the recovery process has required an extraordinary effort from the whole community. The county is working to shape these efforts into a cohesive long-term strategy for recovery that:

• Incorporates immediate needs and the long-term vision of the community.
• Incorporates “lessons learned” to reduce potential impacts from future disasters.
• Uses available technical and financial resources to reach the desired outcomes.

The flood extracted a great toll on infrastructure throughout the area. Transportation,utilities and public facilities were all significantly impacted. In total, the damage assessment area covers approximately 175 square miles (not including 23 square miles located in the City of Pensacola).  For a disaster of this size, scope and complexity, recovery requires a multi-faceted approach. To this end, the county:

• Focused initial efforts on restoring basic services through infrastructure repair, both temporary and permanent.
• Worked to establish multiple points of contact with representatives from FEMA to assist residents in obtaining immediate financial assistance.
• Joined with the City of Pensacola to establish a storm water task force to create a multi-disciplinary approach to storm water recovery that includes engagement from technical experts and representatives from all constituencies to identify and institute mitigation and resiliency initiatives.
• Is working with the owners of Forest Creek Apartments and FEMA to potentially relocate the apartment complex due to repetitive flooding. The property would then be absorbed into the adjacent Jones Creek watershed.
• Conducted more than $60,000 in emergency pumping projects to remove storm water from several neighborhoods that continued to hold flood waters for up to two weeks post-event due to their topography. Neighborhoods receiving this type of assistance included:
  • Ponderosa Drive and Surrey Drive near Nine Mile Road
  • Gulf Beach Highway near Nassau Street
  • 73rd Street at Fabiano Street
• Investigated and identified more than 2,300 sites where infrastructure was damaged.
• Permanently or temporarily addressed or repaired 1,837 of the damaged sites and currently working on another 402 sites. More than $6.6 million has been encumbered to fund project contracts, with $2.8 million expended. Among these projects are:
• Blue Springs Drive/Crescent Lake Repairs: Substantial storm water run-off washed out segments of Blue Springs Drive and private property over a 2,000-foot pathway between East Shore Drive and Clearwater Avenue. Roadway washouts exceeded 10 feet in depth and cut off access to approximately 30 homes. Escambia County Public Works, working jointly with contractors and local utility crews, were able to provide temporary access as quickly as two weeks after the storm. Within five weeks, temporary roadway and utility repairs were complete. More than $400,000 has been spent on emergency repairs and construction of $560,000 in permanent repairs is underway.
• Johnson Avenue Repairs: The east end of Johnson Avenue near Olive Road was washed out at a major culvert crossing, leaving a 20-foot deep gap in the roadway. Design and construction of temporary repairs was completed within 12 weeks post-event at a cost of $500,000, providing access to the nearly 5,000 vehicles that use this portion of the road each day.
• Galvin Avenue Repairs: An overwhelmed storm water system at Galvin Avenue in the Springdale Forest area washed out, cutting off access to 28 properties and destroying one home. More than $45,000 in temporary roadway and utility repairs were completed within three weeks of the flood, providing property owners with access to their homes. Construction of permanent repairs will commence shortly.
• County Storm Water Pond Repair: Repair work to the more than 110 retention pond locations with reported damage began the day after the flood, with 50 sites repaired by county crews at a cost of more than $475,000. An additional 30 sites are currently under contract for approximately $600,000 in engineering design and repair work.

Pictured top: This photo was taken by the occupants of a vehicle in the Highway 29 flood waters looking back toward Burger King, near the time one woman drowned in the flood waters.  Pictured top inset: Rain fell so rapidly that it flooded the I-10 bridge over Escambia Bay. Pictured below: Possessions lined Bristol Park Road after the floodwater receded.  NorthEscambia.com and reader submitted photos, click to enlarge.