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Flooding confirmed in Rockdale County
Lake Capri and Bond Lakes have flooded
onaboat

Flood victims evacuate with help of friends and agencies

From the National Weather Service

THE FLOOD WARNING CONTINUES FOR THE YELLOW RIVER NEAR CONYERS BELOW MILSTEAD * FROM LATE THIS MORNING UNTIL LATE WEDNESDAY NIGHT. * AT 10 AM MONDAY THE STAGE WAS 10.8 FEET AND RISING. * MAJOR FLOODING IS FORECAST. * FLOOD STAGE IS 11.0 FEET. * FORECAST TO RISE ABOVE FLOOD STAGE BY LATE THIS MORNING AND CONTINUE TO RISE TO NEAR 20.0 FEET BY TOMORROW MORNING. THE RIVER WILL FALL BELOW FLOOD STAGE BY WEDNESDAY EVENING. * AT 20.0 FEET... MAJOR FLOODING BEGINS. IN NEWTON COUNTY... RIVERSIDE ESTATES TRAVEL AND MOBILE HOME PARK FLOODS. WEST DOLLAR AND SYCAMORE ROADS FLOOD. BETWEEN 10 TO 25 HOMES WILL FLOOD... TRAILERS WILL NEED TO BE MOVED TO HIGHER GROUND AND EVACUATIONS WILL BE REQUIRED. IN ROCKDALE COUNTY... FLOODING EXPANDS IN THE LAKE CAPRI SUBDIVISION. FLOODING OCCURS ALONG THE SEVERAL ROADS INCLUDING LAKE SORRENTO COURT... LAKE CAPRI DRIVE... CAPISTRANO WAY... RIVIERIA... AND WESTMINISTER LANE. SEVERAL HOMES WILL EXPERIENCE FLOODING.

Flooding has been confirmed around Lake Capri, Lake Sorrento and Bond Lakes in Rockdale County. Several houses and roads near Lakes Capri and Sorrento are flooded, including several streets surrounding Lake Capri and Lake Sorrento. Residents are being evacuated.

 

Rockdale County Sheriff's Deputy Michael Camp confirmed the flooding there and said Bond Lakes was also experiencing some flooding, as well as areas on the opposite end of the county near Daniels Bridge and Union Church roads near the South River.

 

Emergency personnel are on the scene at many of these areas and are evacuating homes where necessary. Camp said that most of the homes near Lake Capri have already been evacuated to the nearby clubhouse. He said the Red Cross is working on setting up temporary shelters around the county.

 

Many residents stated they would be staying with family and friends elsewhere.

 Some of the few residents that have remained in their homes at Lake Capri are digging ditches to divert the rising water.

“Something needs to be done about the branches in the Yellow River,” an anonymous resident said as she dug. “We pay neighborhood flood insurance, and what has that got us?”

 

Resident John Bacon of Riviera Drive had just returned from a trip to Savannah and found the water almost onto his home. As he was evacuating, the water was already knee-deep in his garage.

 

“I got out the most important things,” Bacon said. “I got my house papers, things like that, I got my pets and I got my porsche.”

 

He pointed back at his waterlogged home. “I got my whisky too. I could use a shot right now.”

 

Residents throughout the neighborhood were very pleased with the response of county emergency services, though many wished they had received warnings earlier.

 

“I got a call from some fed agency, and they were asking if I needed any sand bags,” Bacon said, standing in ankle deep water. “I told ‘em no, I didn’t need them.”

Despite the conditions surrounding his home and the others, many residents maintained a decent mood.

"I was (mad) this morning," Bacon said. "But the community has been so good at helping out."

Helping him empty his home of important valuables and electronics were his preacher, and two people he confessed to not even knowing the names of.

 

Camp said that an emergency operations center had been set up to respond to flooding and that officials were continuing to monitor water levels around the county.

 

If anyone sees flooding or needs assistance, including sandbags, they should call the center at (770) 278-8119. He said residents near water should continue to monitor water levels, check local radio and television stations and Web sites for updates and be prepared to evacuate.

 

If an area needs to be evacuated, Camp said emergency personnel will ride through the area and announce evacuation orders through the loudspeaker and will go door-to-door if necessary.

 

He said the next 18 hours will be important, because water levels could rise rapidly from their current 10 to 12-feet level all the way to 20 feet.