Lake Hemet campground residents evacuated due to rising flood waters
Residents at Lake Hemet campground were asked to evacuate for fear that trailers in the park could be could be swept away due to rising flood waters.
The land that separated trailers from Hurkey Creek used to extend at least a hundred feet, but due to erosion, residents say they are just inches away from disaster.
Don Millard says he has been watching as flood waters creep dangerously close to his trailer home at Lake Hemet campground.
As heavy rains erode the land near his home, rain washing through the Cranston burn scar is bringing in mud and debris flows, clogging pipes, pummeling bridges and roadways.
The rain turned the creek into a rising river, something he and neighbors agree could have been entirely avoided.
“There was no preventative maintenance done, they didn’t sandbag it, they could have brought in rails, they could have done anything,” Millard said.
Down the road, Millard’s neighbhor Coleen Richey said they were given just one day’s notice to evacuate.
“All persons who refuse or fail do so at their own risk,” read the evacuation notice.
Residents say they were forced to do so at their own risk and on their own dime.
“They can’t afford thousands of dollars to move it somewhere else and then maybe move it back thousands of dollars if and when they do fix this,” Richey said.
To make matters worse the company management suggested to take these trailers out said they couldn’t even do the job. Idyllwild Garage said it was not possible to do so.
“Don’t think our truck is big enough to move a park model,” a company representative said.
Meanwhile, the campground remains on the brink of catastrophe as rain and snowmelt creep closer.
“Nobody took responsibility and all this damage has been done,” Millard said.
For now, it’s just a waiting game for many of these residents. Many say they hope this situation will at least stay where it is or doesn’t continue to worsen. Residents also hope to get a response from management and the water district to answer some of their questions and concerns.
