Newton- Emergency management crews are waiting to assess the flood damage in Baker County. In the meantime, they're patrolling to make sure everyone in the area is updated and ok.
The rain is coming down, adding to the pools of flood water. But Newton resident Allen Musgrove isn't worried about it. "Everybody else dreads it, I look forward to it," he says. He's watching from a bird's-eye view. Musgrove's house is on stilts, 42 feet above flood stage. "It's a little different. Folks can pull up in your yard and blow their horn, and it's hard to hear it," he says.
The Flint River crested Thursday night at about 32.5 feet. It's going down slowly. But not yet enough for emergency management workers to start assessing the damage. "When the water recedes enough that we can get out in the county and look at that, we can then assess it," says Baker County EMA Director, Andy Belinc.
With the new rain fall, people on the Flint River near Bainbridge are the ones who are going to have to be on guard. "It all flows South, so people South of us are going to have to watch out for what we're getting here," says Belinc.
So far, nobody has been hurt in the flooding. But all of Baker's waterways and drainage systems are full right now, a major concern for emergency workers. "We're going to see a lot of pooling, a lot of standing water, everybody needs to be aware of that driving," says Belinc.
There may not be any injuries, but there are broken hearts, and broken homes. "There's just a lot of folks that just got hit by the flood down there. They're going to need a lot of help," says Musgrove.
Despite that and the dark skies above, Musgrove is still looking at the bright side, from his house on stilts. "Really, it's lakefront property right now," he laughs.
Emergency management officials are keeping an eye on the rainfall in Albany, just in case. They say that if it gets too bad, there is a chance of more flooding in Baker next week.
Posted by stephen.ryan@walb.com
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