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Lowndes County residents deal with the aftermath of flooding

Lowndes County residents deal with the aftermath of flooding
Lowndes County residents deal with the aftermath of flooding
Posted at 3:09 AM, Dec 11, 2018
and last updated 2018-12-10 22:12:34-05

LOWNDES CO., GA (WALB) - In Lowndes County, residents attempted to get back to their everyday lives after the severe storms that caused major flooding in the area.

There is still a huge washout separating the two sides of Carter Way, located off Old Quitman Road.

“Help us, please. Somebody give us some help to fix our road," said Carter Way resident Mike Gunter.

Many residents on Carter Way are still left with a blocked path.

“You still got to pay bills and you cant get out to go pay them. Everything’s backing up and we’re behind in the house payment now because of this. It’s just a big mess right now," said Gunter.

After a week, residents were forced to go through a neighbor’s yard to get out of their neighborhood.

“The neighbors don’t care for us cutting through their yard because its tearing up their yard, making it muddy and everything, but they’re allowing it because it’s the only way in and out at the moment," said Gunter.

They said their ability to do everyday things like go to the grocery store or go to work have been impacted.

“You can’t really concentrate on work when you know you have to drive through a mud slurry to get home in the middle of the night. It’s not really helping matters,” said Gunter.

This was all caused by the 10 plus inches of rain Lowndes County residents saw just a little over a week ago.

“Now we can get out. The stress is easing up but it’s still a burden. I mean, if something was to happen to my son, I don’t know what I would do. I wouldn’t know how to get out of here. I’d be stranded," said Gunter.

The rain caused severe flooding that was so strong that it washed a large section of the road away.

“I got a 3-year-old son. My neighbor has a handicapped son. There’s some other kids back here and it’s putting a burden on anybody. For a while, if we were in need of any medical or emergency help, nobody could get back here," said Gunter.

Originally, there were two major collapses in the one road, but residents said that one of the washouts have been repaired.

“This time, I don’t know what’s going to happen. I don’t know if the county is going to help. I don’t know if the county is going to try and take over the road. I just know that we need help," said Gunter.

Although, the one washout area was fixed, the larger of the two remains.

“But this back here, it needs to be addressed as soon as possible so the rest of us can get in and out. I know the neighbors are tired of us cutting through their yard to get out," said Gunter.

This particular road is private property, therefore it is not the responsibility of the county to repair it.

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