Crews clean up flash flood damage in Naugatuck - WFSB 3 Connecticut
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The heavy rain didn't just rip up roads and cause asphalt to buckle, the flash flooding on Wednesday afternoon also forced a number of people out of their homes.
As a result, for those people living in one Naugatuck apartment building on Prospect Street, it's going to be quite some time before everything can be cleaned up.
Naugatuck received nearly five inches of rain in just over an hour on Wednesday. That large amount of rain in such a short period caused extensive damage to roads, parking lots and homes when rivers and streams couldn't keep water within their banks.
One of those rivers swelled and the water began to rush over a parking lot and directly into the Prospect Manor apartment building.
"The landlord showed up with just a wetvac," said Kames Kuhar, of Naugatuck. "I don't think he realized how bad it was until he got here."
The flash flooding sent water rushing into his, as well as five other basement apartments in the building.
There's even a water line on the wall to show how high the river rose.
"The rug was soaked," he said. "The whole apartment was soaked. Every room in our apartment has water in it. The ledge by the window is covered in mud. Everything is ruined."
For now, he and his family, who don't have renters' insurance, will stay with friends as they look for a new place to live.
The landlord said they've had water before, the last time in October, but never anything like this.
"This was a doozy," said Vincent Lagasse, of Lagasse Rental Apartments.
Lagasse said by the time Mother Nature finished letting loose her watery wrath, there were a few inches of water covering the basement.
Now his main concern is for his tenants on the bottom floor, many who've been with him for years.
"This is a nice, quiet building," he said. "No problems until Mother Nature decided to unleash everything on us."
Tenants will be allowed inside to gather belongings, but it will be at least a few weeks before they can return permanently.
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