FLOODING ON FLEMING ISLAND

October 3, 2007

During the rains and flooding on Tuesday evening, a live oak tree fell across Waterbury Lane in Habersham Harbor around 9:00pm. The tree appears to have been waterlogged from the top, and lost its grip in the water-soaked soil beneath. It came up by the roots, taking landscape shrubs with it, and leaving a hole about two feet deep in the yard. A second live oak in the same yard had also begun to uproot, and was leaning precariously at about a 10-degree angle. A portion of Swimming Pen Creek behind the house may have swelled to contribute to the saturation. Public Works personnel on the scene estimated the fallen tree to be at least one hundred years old.

The owners of the tree were out of town when it fell across the street and into the driveway of John and Carolyn Ward, missing their truck by several feet. Carolyn Ward heard the noise but didn’t realize what happened. “I heard a crackling boom,” she said. “I thought my husband fell down the stairs or something. Thirty minutes later a guy’s at my door asking if I knew a tree fell in my yard.”

Clay County Public Works trucks arrived within minutes. “This is an emergency situation,” Orange Park Area Manager Bernard Watson explained. “Something had to be done tonight—clear the right of way, get it safe. We’ll clean the rest of it up in the morning.”

No damage was apparent as crew cut the tree out of the street. “It took the path of least resistance,” Ward said. “If it had gone the other way, it would have destroyed their house.” Ward said she didn’t have any way to notify the owners except to leave a message on their voice mail.

If the other tree falls, it also is aimed at the street, away from any homes. However, a streetlight with underground wiring is in its path. Watson said they’ll just have to wait and see about the other tree. “Hopefully they’ll get someone to cut that sucker down,” he said.

The crew worked quickly to get the fallen tree out of the street because they had many more calls around town to respond to. Watson said, “I’ve got flooding in Eagle Harbor, flooding in Oak Creek, flooding on Gano, flooding on DeBarry, Bartlett and Horton, flooding on Wells Road, Lester Drive and Constitution Drive, and a sinkhole beside Carpet & Drapes. I’ve had a heck of a night and it ain’t over. I don’t know when I’ll get home.” Watson echoed one of his crew when he said, “Thank you for coming out. People don’t realize what all we do.”

Earlier that evening, heavy rains had many of Orange Park’s traffic lanes under water during rush hour. Some cars drove with their flashers on, and some pulled over to wait for a lull. Some brisk movers, according to Fleming Island resident Lesa Ashline, actually blew waves of water into a slower lane of cars on Highway 17. Ashline was less than a block from home in Habersham Harbor when deep water finally stalled her minivan at the intersection of Wexford and La Vista. The force of the water pulled the van toward the left gutter, and the van settled in about two feet of water. Ashline’s husband, Bruce, and a few neighbors came out to help push the vehicle through knee-high water to higher ground. Even as she unloaded her belongings from the stalled vehicle, Ashline said, “It was worse in town.”

Among the good Samaritans helping Ashline was Eagle Scout Jonathan Oermann, who had discovered the trapped car as he rode his bike through Habersham’s flooded streets. Jonathan’s father had come out in the rain to find a way to stop the water from reaching his living room, with only an inch and a half to go. Ashline got caught when the rain was heaviest between 5:30 and 6:30 pm. Around 7:00, it stopped long enough to let that particular flood recede to gutter level.

Wednesday morning, Watson’s Public Works crew was back in Habersham to remove the rest of the live oak from the affected yards. The stump of the tree was returned to an upright position, along with the attached sod and shrubs.