Cleanup underway following flooding in Bannock County

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Story Published: Jun 27, 2009 at 4:31 PM MST

Story Updated: Jun 27, 2009 at 9:47 PM MST

By Wes Horrocks

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BANNOCK COUNTY - Sunny skies were a welcome sight for homeowners who tried to keep their houses from flooding Friday, but today their facing another challenge.

Now comes the hard part. Morna Mckissick, a Pocatello Homeowner said, "I was up until 5 a.m. this morning."

And it was a similar scene in dozens of homes; soaking wet carpet. Terry Walsh, a Pocatello Resident said, "(We) had eight inches of water in our basement."

Water-logged furniture. Mckissick said, "Water kept coming in for hours."

And destroyed possessions. Walsh said, "(I) Had an office downstairs with a bunch of files in it, but lost those."

The heavy rain and hail only fell for about three hours Friday. When people saw flooding some grabbed buckets and pumps to keep water away, but it just came too fast.

Walsh eventually needed to have his basement pumped by the fire department.

Now family members are helping to clear everything out. "Trying to get it dried out," said Walsh.

Mckissick said, "It was a helpless feeling, because everything was coming in from there and there wasn't anything I could do about it."

But Mckissick still feels lucky, only a part of her basement flooded.

She believes the empty fish pond in her backyard saved her. "I thought I was prepared, more or less, and I didn't expect it yesterday," said Mckissick.

And everyone is already thinking of how to prepare for the future. Walsh said, "Just a mess cleaning it up is all."

The full extent of the flood damage is still unknown.

City and county leaders are still trying to assess everything that was impacted, but with so many homes and businesses effected it will take a few days.

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