John Kaplan started off the New Year by sucking water out of his basement with a five-gallon shop vac.
The Hamilton resident and magician-by-trade woke up Tuesday morning to find his front yard and basement flooded – for the second time this month.
“You get angrier every time it happens, because, you know, something should be done to address this. And nothing has been – it just keeps happening,” said Kaplan.
His basement was also flooded last year because of heavy rains, after the four-foot deep ditch that runs the length of Gilley Road overflowed. That time, it took more than 26 shop-vac buckets to remove the water from his home.
But, said Kaplan, this year the issue stems from the culvert construction project at the intersection of Gilley Road and Westminster Highway.
The staging area full of equipment for the work site, he said, is blocking the flow of water from the ditch to the pump house station, which would push the water into the river.
“What’s happening at the moment is the ditch in front of our property, none of the water is moving,” said Kaplan.
“It’s all blocked up at the end of our street, thanks to the staging area.”
While Kaplan called the city’s public works about the flooding, he said they “pretty much (put) the blame on the contractor.”
City staff have since visited the area, said city spokesperson Clay Adams Thursday, and have spoken with the contractor who is working to ensure water flow is maintained through the construction site.
“What they (the contractor) really need to do is get more pumps going to clear out our ditch and get that water sent down along its merry way to the pump station,” said Kaplan.
Kaplan said his home wasn't the only one affected by Tuesday's flooding, explaining that there was a “high degree” of flooding on both sides of Gilley Road, as well as on Westminster Highway.
At least two properties, said Kaplan, had flooding from the ditch that runs along their backyards, affecting their septic fields.
When flooding happened earlier this month, Kaplan said the contractors told him some of the pumps had failed. And while there does seem to be at least one pump in operation at the construction site, said Kaplan, it doesn’t appear to be dealing with any of the water or the ditches on his street.
“I would like the contractors to take more responsibility for making sure the nearby residences are not being affected,” said Kaplan.
The city's 39 drainage pump stations are working to keep water flowing, and to reduce the risk of flooding, throughout the community, said Adams.
