After widespread flooding, Zephyrhills prepares for possibility of more rain

ZEPHYRHILLS, Fla. — Hoping for the best but preparing for the worst.

With a potential hurricane expected to develop this week in the Gulf of Mexico, that’s what Meagan Sammons and her husband are currently doing.

Weeks ago, their south Zephyrhills home took on an inch of water in the aftermath of Tropical Storm Debby and the periods of heavy rain that followed.

“Our kitchen flooded, so it was a lot of cleanup and a lot of mopping,” she said.

The flooding brought on by that heavy rain surprised Sammons because it flooded not only her home but other corners of Zephyrhills, too.

“We’ve never had that kind of flooding before here in Zephyrhills,” she said.

For weeks, as the area has tried to dry out, neighbors have worried about the threat of a hurricane or tropical storm. Even rain from an indirect hit could exacerbate flooding issues there.

Now, that rain threat is very possible.

“Even if you don’t get a hurricane, you’re going to get a lot of rain bands and things like that. It’s going to create a lot of rain,” said Tom Vanater.

Vanater’s Zephyrhills home on the Silverado Golf Course is now surrounded by a flood barrier called a tiger dam. Pasco County installed it because the golf course behind his home remains severely flooded.

Luckily, the water level is steadily going down as crews use a series of pumps to shuttle the water downstream toward Zephyr Creek and the Hillsborough River.

“We’re in better shape now than we were two or three weeks ago,” Vanater said.

Even though he feels his home is ready for more rain, local crews are making preps.

According to city spokesman Kevin Weiss, Zephyrhills has declared a local state of emergency. Weiss said tiger dams will be staying up for now. The city is also stocking up on fuel and making sure stormwater systems are working.

Additionally, Zephyrhills has a sandbag site operated by Pasco County that is open 24/7. It’s located at the fire station at 6907 Dairy Road in Zephyrhills.