{"id":63910,"date":"2018-07-26T05:00:00","date_gmt":"2018-07-26T11:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/homeowners-and-businesses-begin-recovery-from-flood\/"},"modified":"2018-07-26T11:00:00","modified_gmt":"2018-07-26T11:00:00","slug":"homeowners-and-businesses-begin-recovery-from-flood","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/homeowners-and-businesses-begin-recovery-from-flood\/","title":{"rendered":"Homeowners and businesses begin recovery from flood"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\"Apryl
Apryl Fry walks through her living room Wednesday as her daughter, Abby, 4, comes in from playing outside. The Frys, including Abby\u2019s brother, Ryin, 8, are facing a major cleanup before their unit at the Animas Village Apartments if fully repaired. Tuesday\u2019s flood water came through the front door, leaving a couple of inches of mud and debris.<\/span>Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

Abby Fry may be only 4 years old, but she is motivated to start cleaning up after flooding damaged her family\u2019s apartment.<\/p>\n

Since Tuesday\u2019s floods, mudslides and debris flows, Abby can be seen in the parking lot of Animas Village Apartments shoveling mud and rocks with her toy shovel.<\/p>\n

The damage was particularly bad to the apartment where Abby lives with her mother, Apryl, and her 8-year-old brother, Ryin.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt came straight down the mountain through where we live, literally,\u201d Apryl Fry said.<\/p>\n

The floods caused extensive damage to her apartment, she said. The family is relegated to staying in their bedrooms, which were spared the onslaught of mud and water that blankets their living room floor.<\/p>\n

Fry and her children can\u2019t catch a break from natural disasters.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe had to be evacuated for the fire, and then this mud really scared them,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Fry says her family\u2019s favorite thing to do is go outside, but that is not possible anymore because of the fire and floods. Fry says Ryin has been acting up because of the stress. But the family keeps holding on.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe always seem to find something that brings us back to what matters, which is family,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Tough summer<\/div>\n

Homeowners and renters north of Durango have been at the mercy of Mother Nature since summer began. First, the 416 Fire forced evacuations. Now, rain has dislodged debris, and anything below \u2013 homes, cars and roads \u2013 will face the raging river of mud and rocks.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s what happened July 17<\/a> near the KOA Campground and what happened again Tuesday<\/a> near Honeyville. Residents and businesses in the area spent Wednesday assessing the damage and looking nervously toward the sky, as forecasts predicted more thunderstorms.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis river of boulders and rocks came down right where you start going into the housing development,\u201d said resident Linda Jones. \u201cThe boulders and the river were as high as the bottom floor of one of the apartment\u2019s windows. One whole building is pretty much devastated.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jones spent Wednesday morning trying to clean mud off her car and preparing for more floods.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re in shock, and we\u2019re really worried that\u2019s gonna happen again, possibly this afternoon,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u2018Pretty overwhelming\u2019<\/div>\n

Andrew Loya, a plumber with Master Rooter, was on a service call next door at the Hermosa Hill Condominiums.<\/p>\n

\u201cNext thing I knew, my truck was 60 feet away from the home that I was servicing,\u201d he said. \u201cThere were rocks half the size of cars everywhere, propane tanks ripped off the pipes, spewing gas everywhere, natural gas meters ripped off the pipes,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Because his truck was lodged in a stream of boulders, he had to hike down the road and eventually got a ride back to town from rescue workers.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was pretty overwhelming and scary,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Insurance issues<\/div>\n

Deb Campbell, an account manager for Durango CoWest Insurance, said that most homeowners\u2019 and renters\u2019 insurance policies do not cover flood damage.<\/p>\n

Plus, people seeking insurance could be hard-pressed because policies have waiting periods. A majority of flood insurance is issued through the Federal Emergency Management Agency, which has a 30-day waiting period.<\/p>\n

The scene of mud flowing down streets and driveways seems like the new normal for Kaylee and Brian Leidal, who purchased their home on County Road 250 in April.<\/p>\n

\u201cReally at this point, we\u2019re trying to figure out what\u2019s the long-term plan here,\u201d Kaylee said.<\/p>\n

In last week\u2019s floods, the interior of their home sustained significant damage. They\u2019ll need to replace their first floor flooring and some drywall, she said.<\/p>\n

Since the first flood, the couple built drainage ditches around their property, but the latest flooding flushed those away. The damage to the house was not as bad this week, but a small amount of water did get into their home, she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s really frustrating to put in a lot of work to our brand new house and just helplessly watch as more rain happens,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Campbell advises homeowners to talk to their insurance agent to see if they are eligible for a policy with a shorter waiting period.<\/p>\n

In addition, flood policies may not cover damage from mudslides. There needs to be enough water so it is evident the damage was from flooding, she said.<\/p>\n

James Ranch hit<\/div>\n

Farmers at James Ranch are also expecting large financial losses.<\/p>\n

A lot of insurance companies don\u2019t sign policies for smaller farms, so some farmers leasing land from the ranch could see significant losses, said Jenn Wheeling, who leases land at James Ranch to two farmers.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe insurance companies don\u2019t really deal with smaller farms,\u201d Wheeling said. \u201cWhen you\u2019re a little farmer and you put your pennies together to make it happen and then Mother Nature comes, it\u2019s tough. These guys are just hanging on by a thread. It\u2019s a really hard lifestyle.\u201d<\/p>\n

Elaine Vidal is one of the farmers Wheeling leases land to. She is the owner of Mountain Belle Flower Farm and was harvesting flowers in her hoop house when floods hit.<\/p>\n

\u201cI looked up and saw there was a wall of water in there with me,\u201d Vidal said. \u201cI thought: I need to leave and run now.\u201d<\/p>\n

By the time she got in her car and out of harm\u2019s way onto the highway, she turned around to watch her hoop house \u2013 in which she invested 95 percent of her earnings \u2013 collapse.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt went down very quick,\u201d Vidal said. \u201cThat mud and water was strong and very powerful.\u201d<\/p>\n

She hopes to salvage what she can for the season but is worried more floods could damage what little she has left. When she went to the scene to assess the damage Tuesday night, she broke down in tears.<\/p>\n

\u201cAfter I went to scope it out, after they opened the road, it was overwhelming,\u201d Vidal said. \u201cI couldn\u2019t think or see straight. Seeing all the debris, oh my gosh. It was very overwhelming.\u201d<\/p>\n

Vidal leases her land from James Ranch, located on the east side of U.S. Highway 550. Though no buildings were damaged by the flood, the ranch is expecting huge economic losses from the flooding.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s in the tens of thousands for sure,\u201d said Dan James. \u201cAnd every time they close the highway, we suffer losses because no one has access to us.\u201d<\/p>\n

The James family spent Wednesday assessing damage. Their wildlife fencing got leveled, so they are concerned about deer getting onto their property. However, they don\u2019t want to begin cleaning up the damage because forecasts are calling for more rain.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s going to be a real significant cleanup effort once the rain stops,\u201d James said. \u201cIt\u2019s just more of an assessment today. But they\u2019re calling for more rain, so it doesn\u2019t do a lot of good moving stuff around if the same thing is going to happen the following day.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2018We literally lost everything\u2019<\/div>\n

Brandi Bailey, owner of the Durango North KOA campground, was devastated by the first mudslides July 17. She lives in a mobile home on the campground that is currently filled with mud.<\/p>\n

Bailey said she expects that the cost to fix the damages caused by the mudslides are in the seven figures. She said one of her cabins is in danger of falling into the Animas River at any moment.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe lost everything,\u201d she said. \u201cWe essentially lost our whole business. We literally lost everything. This is a huge, huge issue.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bailey was allowed to return to the campground, but every time it rains, she has to leave. Her family is staying in hotels until they can figure out their plan moving forward.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s essentially not safe,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s a day-to-day, minute-to-minute situation for us.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bailey, who bought the campground in February, has not been satisfied with the response to the incident. She said the best assistance she has gotten is from a GoFundMe page<\/a> that was created by her friends in California.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s been no relief whatsoever,\u201d she said. \u201cWith the impact these monsoons are having on major roads, something larger needs to happen with the state, the county and immediate relief. Attention needs to be paid to this.\u201d<\/p>\n

rsimonovich@durangoherald.com<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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