Debris shows what floods took

It was the city’s worst flood since 1913.

FINDLAY, Ohio (AP) — A pink bicycle with training wheels. A box of Legos. A mud-covered portable playpen.

Stacked along the edge of Findlay Street on Tuesday, the heaping piles were more than just debris ruined in last week’s historic flood.

They revealed just how much was lost.

“The only thing I have left was at the top of my closet,” said Shandale Collins, whose two-bedroom house had been filled with about a foot of water.

His leather couch, most of his clothes and his 1-year-old son’s scooter were too waterlogged to save. His carpet was still squishy.

“I don’t have anything left for my son,” he said.

Worst since 1913

Neighborhoods were swamped when heavy rains dumped up to 10 inches during a few hours last Tuesday, bringing the city’s worst flood since 1913.

Hancock County, which includes Findlay, and five other counties have been declared federal disaster zones.

How much it will all cost still is far from known.

Owners of restaurants, law offices and bars along Main Street were just beginning to tear out their walls and rebuild Tuesday. The library and some office buildings were still closed and will need extensive repairs. A middle school near downtown will need repairs to its offices and cafeteria, which could cost $1.8 million.

With the water gone, the garbage mounding along the streets was being measured in tons. The county landfill took in about 900 tons of trash Saturday.

Schools in the city now won’t open until the second week of September because the district’s leaders are worried about children walking down sidewalks littered with trash, glass and boards filled with rusty nails.

Most of what was destroyed came from flooded basements and garages.

“It’s amazing how much people lost,” said Mike Sobczyk, the city’s service director. “You see kids’ toys tossed out, family pictures. Those are people’s lives right there.”

Along Findlay Street, a crusty brown teddy bear sat under a pile of wallboard.

The neighborhood of modest homes is prone to flooding. It’s only a football field away from the Blanchard River. Some who live on the street said they’ve been flooded four times this year.

“This time it took on a lot more,” said Evonne Perry. Her husband’s home office was hit by the water, wrecking a computer. “There were dead fish on my porch,” she said.

Perry also lost all of her Halloween decorations. “I got married on Halloween,” she said. “We have a party every year.”

Depth marker

Across the street, a pink ribbon tied around a tree marked where the water rose about four feet above the street.

Steve Shoemaker tossed out his mom’s old rocking chair, some family photos and much of his NASCAR collection, including autographed photos of drivers Rusty Wallace and the late Dale Earnhardt.

“That’s the saddest part,” he said. “Dale ain’t around no more.”

Still, like most folks in the neighborhood, he said it could have been much worse, noting that no one died in the northwest Ohio city.

“The dogs made it, we made it,” he said. “We’ll survive.”

Downtown it was much the same.

Outside the Woodland Restaurant, boxes of apples, cabbage and potatoes were piled next to a heaping mound of boards.

Inside, Jason Jarrell peeled off three layers of buckled wood floors. The flood changed his job title from head chef to head carpenter.

It will cost about $20,000 to repair the restaurant, he said. Jarrell’s house was damaged too.

“I’ve been working nonstop since last Thursday,” he said.

A school supply store that sells educational games and books to teachers and parents lost about $35,000 worth of merchandise.

“Unfortunately, everything’s paper,” said Steve Hoane, whose wife, Kay, runs the store. “This is the busiest time of the season.”