Former Fort Worth Flood Problem Areas No Longer An Issue
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FORT WORTH (CBS 11 NEWS) - From her front door on Riverway Trail, Teresa Cushman used to film the street whenever heavy rain would fall.
She lives next to Cromwell Marine Creek Road – an area prone to flooding.
"We would watch drivers go through the barricades from our front yard," she said.
The Cushmans were constantly worried that a driver swept off the street and into the creek would drown. They've had knocks on the door in the middle of the night from people who were forced to abandon their vehicles.
"We were worried someone was actually going to drown and we would be faced with all that," Cushman said.
That was before – the Cushmans say flooding on Cromwell Marine Creek Road is no longer a concern.
In October 2013, the city opened a new road by building a bridge high above the creek, complete with a pedestrian walkway.
The two high water warning lights were no longer needed; stormwater managers say the risk is no longer there on this particular road.
"It means I don't have to worry about anybody drowning out there. I think it's worth it," said Cushman.
Right now, Fort Worth has a dozen stormwater mitigation projects in the works.
The projects are paid for with a fee added to the Fort Worth water bill in 2006.
The city's Stormwater Management department has a master plan for projects, prioritizing the ones with the greatest risk to lives and property. Feasibility, cost, size and community acceptance are also factors taken into account.
Linda Sterne says the city is aware of 17 deaths related to flooded roads dating back to 1986.
The April 30th 2004 incident at the intersection of Butler and McClure Streets put emphasis on the need for creating a bigger plan. On that day, a mother and two children died when their vehicle was swept away in a flash flood.
Looking back on what she's seen in the past, Teresa Cushman says the flooding under Cromwell Marine Creek Road is not what it used to be.
"Now they've got it built up higher so we don't have that flooding problem anymore," she said.
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