HRT for Women in Orlovista, FL

With the start of hurricane season in Florida on Thursday, people living in flood-prone areas of central Florida are concerned that they won’t be protected.

Many are victims of the flooding caused by Hurricane Ian in September.

The storm generated more than 700,000 property insurance claims.

In Orlo Vista, near Kirkman and Old Winter Garden Roads in Orange County, 148 homes were flooded last September.

The contents of some homes are strewn about the streets that were so flooded by three nearby retention ponds, boats were used to rescue residents.

It was five feet high in Calvin Williams’ house.

He told WESH 2 News, “All of that water came over here, everything.”

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"You had no flood insurance?" WESH 2 asked.

"No, no," Williams said.

"What are you going to do?" WESH 2 asked.

"I'm going to take my time and to fix my house up pretty good," Williams said.

Williams will be working to restore his home without help from his wife, Herbert.

He says she became so stressed following their boat rescue, that weeks after Ian, she suffered a fatal heart attack.

During Ian, more than 10 inches of rain fell in little more than 24 hours.

The retention ponds, around since the 1950’s era homes were built, overflowed into the streets.

Now, construction on the ponds which began in March, and cost $23.4 million, is progressing.

When it’s done, the three retention ponds will be lowered by 12 feet.

That’ll increase capacity from 51 million gallons now to 141 million, almost triple, and a new pipe is being installed to enhance the pumping network.

It’s scheduled to be finished by June of next year.

Residents are probably wondering what happens this hurricane season if we get another catastrophic rain event.

Because the north and south ponds have been drained, they can handle rainfall while the work is ongoing.

While the project should help prevent future flooding, the county commissioner for this District says it’s long overdue.

"The county had failed the folks that live here," said Mike Scott, the Orange County commissioner.

Scott grew up in the county and says this kind of work to relieve Orlo Vista from flooding has been talked about for decades, and should have been greatly improved after Hurricane Irma in 2017.

With some people struggling to rebuild, and others who just want out of the neighborhood, Scott is pushing a plan to use money in the Federal Emergency Management Agency's Hazard Mitigation Grant Program to buy some homes in this and other flood-prone neighborhoods, including Bonnie Brook in the Oak Ridge neighborhood.

"I think the county owes them that and more. The first thing in making a mistake is accepting it and accepting responsibility, I think," Scott said. "And after that, figuring out what is the best path forward."

Scott expects a community meeting this summer, with the home purchase grant application deadline set for the end of August.

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ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. – Leaders in Orange County took another step Tuesday toward fixing flooding in the Orlo Vista and West Side Manor neighborhoods.

Commissioners unanimously approved a contract for the Orlo Vista Flood Mitigation Project Tuesday, weeks after the county said it asked for more money to cover construction costs.

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The bid, which was awarded to Thalle Construction Co., calls for digging existing stormwater ponds 10 feet deeper and installing a new pump station near Ronnie Circle.

The $23 million project was made possible after the county was able to secure funds from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

Orange County receives millions for flooding project in Orlo Vista

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Anthony Bell is one of dozens in Westside Manor who lost nearly everything after flooding from Hurricane Ian overwhelmed the neighborhood.

“I’m pretty much homeless,” Bell said. “My truck was underwater. I lost most of my clothes and all my furniture. I haven’t been able to stay at my house for two months.”

He said many in his neighborhood are frustrated after homes flooded in 2017 from Hurricane Irma and again in September from Hurricane Ian.

“This shouldn’t have even happened, so where are we supposed to believe that the county is going to start doing anything when no one was held accountable,” Bell said.

Plans to improve the stormwater system were made after Hurricane Irma hit, but the county said construction costs exceeded the funding they secured.

Bell said he’s hopeful for the current plan but would also like to see accountability from the county.

“No one’s paying any price, but the people that live here,” Bell said.

Construction on the Orlo Vista Flood Mitigation Project is scheduled to begin early next year and a completion date is expected in 2024.

ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — Four days after Hurricane Ian ripped through central Florida, one Orange County community is still dealing with flooding and power outages.

People living in Orlo Vista say it stems from a problem with the stormwater pump.

Read: Central Florida counties are providing FEMA assistance after Ian

Residents said this is a problem that has been going on for years and that it floods nearly every time it rains.

When Ian hit, the water reached several feet high.

Wath: Orange County: Flooding torments Orlo Vista community again

There are still several inches of water sitting on some of these streets.

Residents said the problem is that water overflows from a lake just down the street, and the stormwater system isn’t equipped to handle massive amounts of water.

One man’s house was severely damaged by floodwaters. The rugs are still soaked with water and his family’s cars were also destroyed.

He said it ruined all of his mother’s furniture.

Read: Central Florida counties provide updates for trash collection after Hurricane Ian

Orange County said Public Works teams were in Orlo Vista ahead of the storm working to lower the water levels since it does have a history of flooding.

But it wasn’t enough to stop it from happening again.

Orange County said it is committed to making improvements, but people in the community said they have heard it before.

“There’s too many times that this happened and we keep getting promise after promise nothing has been done,” said Angel Hart Thompson, an Orlo Vista resident.

Hart Thompson and Kiki Hines organized around 50 volunteers from the community to help each other while they wait for county officials to make a permanent fix. They have collected donations of clothes and food to help those in need.

People said they need more help from the county to get this fixed, and that while they’re frustrated that they haven’t gotten enough help from the county, neighbors are stepping up to help each other in the meantime.

“We grew up in this neighborhood,” Hines said. “We’re all one.”

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Homeowner back in house damaged by Ian

Nearly nine months since Hurricane Ian hit Central Florida, one Orlo Vista woman is rebuilding her flooded-out home piece by piece. Janét Buford-Johnson has owned her house for 20 years. It’s been with her family for 30 years. She said it was only the second time the house flooded with the first time being during Hurricane Irma in 2017.

ORLO VISTA, Fla. - Nearly nine months since Hurricane Ian hit Central Florida, one Orlo Vista woman is rebuilding her flooded-out home piece by piece.

Janét Buford-Johnson has owned her house for 20 years. It’s been with her family for 30 years. She said it was only the second time the house flooded with the first time being during Hurricane Irma in 2017.

"Irma was bad," Buford-Johnson said. "Ian was much worse because we lost everything."

Buford-Johnson and her 16-year-old daughter were forced out by floodwaters higher than three feet. Buford-Johnson said the water came in from both the front and back sides of the house. Ian left the mother and daughter "basically homeless."

They returned to live in the home in June after Buford-Johnson made basic repairs.

"The first thing when I get money, I’ll call a contractor," Buford-Johnson said. "‘All right give me an estimate.’ I’ll do whichever estimate that comes up where I can afford to do it."

Buford-Johnson said the home has sentimental value worth more than the cost of repairs which are estimated at nearly $140,000.

"The biggest fear is to be flooded out once again," Buford-Johnson said.

Orange County’s $25 million dredging project is expected to bring the area some flooding relief.

Crews are increasing the size of three neighboring retention ponds, and they’re installing new pipes that can pump more than 40,000 gallons of water a minute. Buford-Johnson said the county’s flood prevention plan is vital to the neighborhood going forward. She also said it comes after many of her neighbors already left the neighborhood after last fall’s flooding.

Brett Blackadar, Orange County Public Works deputy director, said finding sufficient funding was one of the main reasons construction only started this past March.

"I know it’s difficult for a lot of people to see that because they want instant action, but this process to accumulate $25 million for this project is difficult when we don’t have that kind of funding right in front of us at all times," Blackadar said.

The county estimates dredge work in the neighborhood is supposed to finish next July unless there are any major weather delays. Blackadar said the upgrades would have cut down the number of homes flooded from more than 100 to around a dozen.

"A majority of the homes that flooded under Ian under this scenario would not be flooded," Blackadar said. "There may be a few that could flood because Ian was more than a 100-year storm."

Blackadar said when construction is complete the homes that could flood with an Ian-like storm would see inches of water instead of the feet-high levels seen last fall.

Buford-Johnson said she can’t take any more flooding.

"We’re hoping and praying that nothing happens this season," Buford-Johnson said.

Buford-johnson has gotten some financial help from F.E.M.A. She expects a little more money through insurance her mortgage company had on the home but said neither source will be enough to cover all the repairs.

ORLOVISTA, Fla. —

People in Orlo Vista started their preparations for Subtropical Storm Nicole on Monday.

David Phillips helped his neighbor repair his awning after it was damaged by Hurricane Ian. Now, he is tying things down at his house too with Nicole on the way.

“I’m going to batten down like I would a hurricane. That way nothing goes flying around,” Phillips said.

Phillips and his family are no strangers to the devastating impacts of storms. They were rescued from Ian’s floodwaters by Orange County Fire Rescue over a month ago. They’re in a hotel now, but Phillips secured whatever he could at his home ahead of Nicole making landfall.

“You have to be prepared,” he said. “You treat every storm like a unique entity because each one has a life of its own.”

Other people are still in the thick of it, like Oluwakemi Olajide and her husband Joseph Agboola. They lost everything in their home to Ian.

“And we hear another storm is coming. Again! I’m dead,” said Olajide. “I have my family there. We don’t have anywhere to stay. Every house, if you look at the house, everything is mold. You can’t even go in there without using your mask.”

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The couple showed WESH inside their home where their walls are covered in mold from the floodwater that rushed inside. Now, everything they own is outside in debris piles.

“To see everything in front of me making me sad, cry, I can’t even look at it,” Olajide said. “And to make our situation worse, there’s nowhere to stay.”

The couple said FEMA covered their hotel stay for a month. But now, that month is up and another storm is coming.

“What are we going to do?” Agboola said. “The only thing we can do is to pray.”

Agboola said they are looking for an apartment, but no one is willing to let them sign a two or three-month lease. The shortest rental option they can find are six-month leases.

“We don’t have the money to rent,” he said. “We’re going to pay the mortgage too. How are we going to do that?”

Olajide said they hope some assistance comes through soon.

“So where do they want us to go? We can’t come back to the house. Where? I’ll be homeless. Sleeping outside with my kid,” Olajide said. “I need help.”