MARTIN COUNTY, Fla. — What was once a sprawling cattle pasture in western Martin County now looks more like a lake.
What residents described as 3 to 4 feet of floodwater currently covers parts of Hungryland Farms in the Trailside community, forcing cattle to wade and swim through submerged pastures in search of dry ground.
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But for the families who live and work there, the flooding is more than a natural disaster. They say it's a crisis years in the making — one they warned officials about as far back as 2018.
Documents obtained by WPTV show residents raised concerns about drainage problems long before last week's historic rainfall inundated the Treasure Coast.
Now, with the rain gone but the water lingering, residents are questioning whether the devastation could have been prevented.
'All of our pastures ... they're all underwater'
Melissa Chirico, who raises grass-fed cattle at Hungryland Farms in the rural Trailside community, says the flooding has transformed her property almost overnight.
"It feels like Lake Okeechobee," she said.
Her cattle, accustomed to grazing freely across the farm, are now navigating deep floodwater.
"It's completely covered," Chirico said. "All of our pastures ... they're all underwater."
The flooding has left her animals without their primary food source and exposed them to potentially deadly hazards, including drowning, waterborne parasites and electrical dangers.
Chirico pointed to an electrical transformer nearly submerged by floodwater, questioning whether her cattle could be electrocuted if they wandered too close.
And despite the rain stopping, she said the water isn't draining — it's rising.
"We always thought we were through because the rain had stopped, but the water kept rising," she said.
Warnings dating back to 2018
For Trailside Homeowners Association President Kyla Shay, the flooding is the culmination of years of unresolved drainage concerns.
In a 2018 letter obtained by WPTV, Shay warned homeowners that property south of Trailside had effectively become a reservoir, with water rising as much as 3.5 feet above community roads and breaching a berm — a raised barrier designed to control water flow.
That same year, Shay contacted the South Florida Water Management District, warning that blocked drainage had left some pastures under 8 feet of water.
She asked for help but says the underlying problems were never resolved.
"It's a combination of years of 'We'll get to it,' and we never got to it," Shay said.
County officials: Trailside is essentially a bathtub
Martin County Public Works Director Jim Gorton acknowledges the community faces significant drainage challenges.
Gorton said a berm breached Monday on the county-owned Elise J Property northeast of Trailside, sending water into a nearby canal, with some water backflowing into the community.
"We still can't get back to that breach," Gorton told investigative reporter Kate Hussey, explaining that high water levels have prevented crews from accessing the area.
But the larger problem, he said, is Trailside's geography.
The community is essentially a bathtub, surrounded by berms, hundreds of acres of wetlands and two independent water control districts.
Water flows into the area, but there is only one drainage ditch for it to slowly escape.
"There's no easy way to get that water out except by pump or gravity," Gorton said.
A drainage solution designed years ago — but never built
WPTV contacted engineer Bob Higgins, who works with both the Pal Mar Water Control District and the Hobe St. Lucie Conservancy District.
Higgins said a potential solution had already been designed years ago: an outfall that would allow water to drain through the R G Mitigation Bank Preserve to the south and the neighboring Elise J property, which Martin County acquired in 2026.
But that project was never built.
When Hussey asked Gorton whether the county had been aware of the proposal, he confirmed officials had discussed it with the property's former owner.
"We did have some dialogue with the previous owner of Elise J about creating a formal water control structure that could discharge before the berms would breach," Gorton said.
According to Gorton, the former owners submitted two permit applications to the South Florida Water Management District, but construction never began.
WPTV contacted the former property owners, who said they did not know why the project was never completed.
When Hussey reached out to the South Florida Water Management District, the agency said Trailside was outside its jurisdiction.
However, Gorton said the district had permitted every property within Trailside and oversaw the proposed drainage project.
Hussey followed up with the district, seeking clarification about its jurisdiction and asking why the drainage project was never constructed.
The district has not responded to those follow-up questions.
County hopes to revive abandoned drainage project
Despite the years of delays, Gorton said there may finally be a path forward.
"The good news is the county purchased that property, and it's our intent to bring that project forward," he said.
Gorton said he has already requested the original permit applications in hopes of expediting approval — and construction— of the project.
He also plans to return Friday to assess the flooding and determine what immediate relief may be possible.
"We're looking at ways to get the water out faster," he said.
But for residents like Chirico, every additional day underwater carries a cost.
"This could be a very costly natural disaster for us," she said.
Her cattle still need to eat. Their pastures are submerged. And with no clear timeline for when the water will recede, the future of her farm remains uncertain.
"I don't have any food," Chirico said to her cows. "I'm sorry."
For now, Hungryland Farms is living up to its name — and the families who depend on it are waiting for the water to go down.
WPTV investigative reporter Kate Hussey continues to seek answers from the South Florida Water Management District about the proposed drainage project and why it was never completed.