PASCO COUNTY, Fla. — What showed up in Victor Lemus’ neighborhood Thursday afternoon was a reason to celebrate, a reason to breathe a sigh of relief, and a reason to have a victory drink.
“I had two Coronas,” Lemus said with a smile.
A water pump was delivered and set up not far from his home near Dade City, off Fort King Road.
The pump is needed because a large portion of the neighborhood is covered in water. It flooded in the days after Hurricane Milton and has remained flooded ever since.
The water never receded and has made it hard for some homeowners, including Lemus, to access their homes.
“We’ve been fighting this for two months, and it shouldn’t — it shouldn’t be a fight,” he said.
ABC Action News first met Lemus and his wife back in January after they reached out to the newsroom, desperate for help and worried for their lives.
“If we had a frickin’ fire or a medical emergency, they could not get to us. They could not get to us,” said Lemus’ wife, Dorena, in a previous interview.
On Jan. 30, Pasco County told ABC Action News it could not help immediately or at all since the water is located on private property. Additionally, state pumps that were previously in place in the neighborhood were relocated from Pasco County in December.
Homeowners like Lemus spoke up at recent meetings and multiple times on ABC Action News.
“And if it wasn’t for the news media helping us shine the light on how bad this was, I think it would have fell on deaf ears, personally,” he said. “You have to get your voice out there.”
As of Thursday afternoon, the state-owned pump is back in the neighborhood and back in the county’s control.
“Well, it was, you know, happiness,” Lemus said of his reaction to the surprise.
According to a spokesperson for Pasco County, “several pumps and associated appurtenances” were received from the state and set up throughout the Hickory Hills area. The county began pumping flood water at 2:30 p.m. Thursday.
Lemus can hardly wait to see the water disappear and for normalcy to return to the neighborhood.
All he can do now is celebrate.
ABC Action News, however, was unable to spot any pumps at another area of flooding off Phelps Road, which is closer to Zephyrhills, but will follow through with Pasco County to see if and when pumps will be used there.
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