Flooding forces Balch Springs residents to evacuate their homes
BALCH SPRINGS, Texas - Flooding forces Balch Springs residents to evacuate their homes
Just one month after an out-of-control fire devastated a Balch Springs neighborhood, out-of-control floodwaters devastated another neighborhood in the city.
Homes along Hickory Creek near Lake June Road flooded out on Monday. Nearby businesses were also impacted.
The area saw about half a foot of rain.
Elizabeth Parker is now forced out of her Balch Springs home after flash flooding swallowed her street overnight.
"And start all over again. My husband just passed away, and we don’t need no more," she said.
The water receded by the afternoon, causing a muddy mess to clean up.
"I didn’t pick up much," Parker said. "I don’t want to touch anything."
Parker waded through waist deep water in order to evacuate her home.
"By 7:30 or 8 o’clock, everything went downhill," she said. "The water was all the way up to the grill on my truck."
Dozens off Lake June Road left their homes behind.
The heavy rain caused a creek near I-635 and Seagoville Road to overflow.
Some residents were trapped and had to be rescued from the high water. Others sheltered in their vehicles.
"I stayed in the truck from 3 a.m. to 7 a.m. I couldn’t go inside," Maria Corana said.
But once it was safe, it was time to survey the damage.
With their front yards underwater, homeowners watched the runoff rush inside.
Anna Carrizales was on her way back from Houston and was worried about her parents, knowing their home is prone to flooding.
"Then I got even more worried when she didn’t answer. Is she ok? Did the water sweep her?" she recalled. "You can see that the water reached all the way up to here."
The family of four is safe and staying with family.
Bob Gassett is thankful he can sleep in his home tonight, spending his Monday cleaning up debris. Only his garage was flooded.
"I haven’t even started on the backyard," he said.
But just a few houses down, Parker packs up to stay with her mother, unsure when she will be back.
"So here we are . We now have to go through all this," she said.
The Balch Springs Rec Center on Shepherd Lane is operating as a shelter for people affected by the flooding or power outages.
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