A neighborhood along Tally Ho Road in Arroyo Grande that was hit hard by flooding during the January 9th storm is reliving a nightmare.
Homes left uninhabitable by flooding in January were inundated again with feet of water on Friday.
Andrea Helming was in disbelief as she walked through her mother’s home to survey flood damage after Tally Ho Creek overflowed its banks.
“We can’t live like this; how do we live like this?” she asked while walking through floodwaters.
Helming carried her mother through floodwater to safety on January 9th.
Just two months later, the house has flooded again.
“How do I have my kids here? How do I have my elderly mother live here where I carry her out of her house?”
Water crept up just beneath the floorboards as we walked through the inside of the home.
The garage was also flooded, and the entire backyard was underwater.
“The sad thing is, I could probably tell you-- five or six people-- as soon as they can rebuild, they’ll be selling their homes,” said Helming.
Other homes were spared repeat flood damage but are still recovering from the last flood event.
‘Last time, the entire yard was a lake—flooded. But now, there are only a few streams flowing through, “said Vincent Petrie who lives a few doors down.
A barrier built up by residents protected Petrie’s backyard and home, but a breach next door left his neighbor’s yard underwater.
“My neighbor spent hours building a berm behind his property and it’s already been breached. So, he’s going through it again worse,” said Petrie.
Home after home has been red-tagged along Tally Ho Road.
Now, there is growing frustration among residents who say they have been held back from clearing out overgrowth in the creek bed.
“We’re responsible for keeping the creek cleared up-- each property, each homeowner,” explained Helming. “Not a single person has come out here to help mitigate and see what needed to be done.”
A growing number of residents say they plan on moving away from the flood-prone area.
