CALDWELL COUNTY, N.C. — Some Caldwell County residents were scrambling to clean up Tuesday after flooding.
“Just like you were pouring it out of a bucket,” said Ann Osborne, describing the rain Monday night that left a sinkhole in front of her home on St. Johns Road, east of Lenoir.
She added: “We needed it, but not that much at one time.”
Ray Hunt pointed out the debris along Pennell Avenue in Lenoir, where two homes flooded. The water had receded Tuesday, but tree limbs were left behind that slammed against the railings on a bridge from flash flooding.
“Nobody could get through,” Ray Hunt said. “Houses were underwater over here. Foundations were flooded. It was a sight to see.”
Gene Hoyle pointed to the waterline on his house and the damage inside his business next door. Mud covered the parking lot.
“We were here but we weren't really paying attention until the water started coming in, and we realized we had a problem,” Hoyle said.
Firefighters think much of the damage across Lenoir was done by clogged storm drains.