STUART, Fla. — Homeowners are bracing for the possibility that Hurricane Ian might still bring heavy rain to the Treasure Coast.
Bonnie Cook said her front yard already floods with water coming all the way to her front door.
“The water was coming in my house,” said Cook, as she showed WPTV video of a previous flood to her home. “It comes all the way up here, fills up, comes all the way around.”
On Monday, she got her sandbags ready as she braces for what could be heavier than normal rainfall from Hurricane Ian.
Cook said her flood risk has increased over the last year due to nearby construction. She said new, higher roads send water straight to her home.
“It’s built up higher above me, built over me,” she said. “Now, they got that pond back there.”
D.R. Horton is building the new Willow Pointe community.
Cook is excited to see the new homes, but didn’t anticipate construction impacting her home.
“Me and my daughter out there in the rain just digging a trench,” she said.
So, she went to the county looking for help.
“I was just praying and stressing out,” she said.
On Monday, construction crews and the county confirmed for WPTV that a red flag was placed on construction in August. That means work must stop until they can give Cook’s home flood relief.
That even prompted them to do work in front of her home to decrease the risk of flooding.
WPTV reached out to D.R. Horton to see what else they have planned but have not heard back.
