Flood Clean Up Begins In Winfield & Foley

[Guest guest]

Flood Clean Up Begins In Winfield & Foley

Sunday, 06 Jul 2008

MyFox Saint Louis - Saint Louis,MO*

By Lindsey

http://www.myfoxstl.com/myfox/pages/News/Detail?

contentId=6922504 & version=1 & locale=EN-US & layoutCode=TSTY & pageId=3.2.1

FOLEY, MO (KTVI-myFOXstl.com) --

Residents in flooded areas of Winfield and Foley, Missouri, are just

now able to get back into their homes.

The water is receding faster than first predicted, but the clean-up

process will be a long one.

FOX 2's Lindsey explains why more help is needed.

In Winfield, residents are just now getting into their homes..

Newton Caffrey lives in Winfield, " My basement is full. Got about 6

inches in the living room. Drywall is going to have to be taken out;

carpet will have to go. "

Four miles to the north in Foley, it's the same scenario, " Smell.

You can tell the mold that's here, " explains Foley Mayor Bill

Thornhill, " We've got a lot of debris that washed in from parts

unknown and it will all have to be cleaned up. "

" It's a disaster. There are people you talk to, three, four, five

feet of water in their houses. They are tearing it out. " and

Waite work for FEMA and can relate to the residents, having

been flood victims themselves in the 1990s. " It's not just months,

it's a year, two years, to get rid of the mold, mildew, to get it

dried out, to get it rebuilt is a long, long process. "

Winfield and Foley were flooded with volunteers, that was before the

water came, now that's gone, so is much of the help.

Mayor Thornhill explains, " We are hopeful that there will be some

groups that want to come in and assist people, because we do have

some elderly folks that don't have the means, and there's a lot of

people that don't have flood insurance do to the fact they didn't

have the money to pay for flood insurance. "

It may be a mess, but as Newton Caffrey reflects, " It's home. I like

it out here. "

Newton Caffrey will rebuild his Winfield home. Others won't. This

flood will take a toll on towns like Winfield and Foley.

Mayor Thornhill adds, " These little towns have been here a long time

and you hate to see a little history piecemealed away, but it's

going to happen to some degree I am sure. "

FEMA says most residents are registered. Some in Winfield have

already received FEMA checks. FEMA will help those that don't have

flood insurance or are under-insured.