Pastors Praying For Water & Political Action For Sandbranch
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DALLAS COUNTY (CBS 11) — Just 18 miles from downtown Dallas is community of roughly 40 homes with no trash service, no sewage system and no running water.
Many of the nearly 100 residents of Sandbranch say for decades it seems few, if any, elected officials cared about them.
"The only time they know we are down here is when taxes are due," said Ivory Hall, a 39-year resident of Sandbranch.
However, some say that's changing now that Sandbranch has become a hotly contested political issue.
Saturday more than 100 people, including several pastors from churches across DFW, gathered at Mt. Zion Baptist Church in Sandbranch for a prayer.
Local Pastor Eugene Keahey said he's encouraged that the conditions in his community may finally change.
"We are standing as a collective body that believe and votes," he said. "That's the difference this year. We have a group of people that come together and vote."
For years, Sandbranch, located in unincorporated Dallas County, relied on well water. In the 1980s the well water became contaminated and undrinkable.
Since then, residents like Hall have gone into town to fill up a portable tank nearly every week with water and then use bottled water for drinking and cooking.
Cost and floodplain restrictions have stymied attempts in the past by the county to bring water to the community.
Several at Saturday's prayer rally said a candidate's stance on Sandbranch's water issue could be the deciding factor when they vote Tuesday.
In January, Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson toured the area with federal officials. FEMA officials are expected to visit the area next week.
Residents say despite being classified as a floodplain, their property hasn't flooded in decades.
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