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------- > 4 - PORT PERRY "WEEKEND STAR" FRIDAY, JUNE 30, 2000 Owner turns to province, township for compensation Flash flood destroys basement in Island home By Chris Hall Port Perry Star A Scugog Island man has turned to the township and the provincial government for help after a flood seri- ously damaged his home. But financial aid could be a long time coming for Tom Morgan, if at all. He estimates that repair bills could be in excess of $25,000. On June 11 and 12 torrents of water swept across Chandler Dr. and slammed against the north side of Mr. Morgan's house, which is located at the intersection on Davage Dr. Heavy rains flowed from a field to a ditch across from Mr. Morgan's home. 'He says that the ditch and culvert hadn't been cleaned, and that water was forced to flow across Chandler Dr. to his home, and not through the ditch's Durham Steam Cleaning 985-8552 drainage system. A flow of water as much as three feet deep swept across the front yard and slammed into the home's north wall, said Mr. Morgan. The repeated pounding caused a sinkhole, which led the basement wall to break and the foundation to crack, he says. As much as five feet of water flooded into the crawlspace, destroying a water heater, electric fur- nace, water pump, and two sump pumps, said Mr Morgan. He also fears the flood may have had an adverse effect on wells in the area. "The water washed out the road and my front yard, it was a total disaster," he said. Mr. Morgan called Scugog Mayor Doug Moffatt e 3M Scotchguard e Broadloom e Upholstery e | oose Rugs 852-6711 DISCOUNTS ® Mature Driver (50+) e Retiree e Multi Vehicle e Short Commute Brethour INSURANCE BROKERS LTD. Farm e Hobby Farm eo Auto Residential ® Business DISCOUNTS FOR YOUR AUTO FOR YOUR HOME & MORE.. For competitive rates & friendly, personal service CALL TODAY! 1-800-461-1468 (705) 357-3916 131 River Street, Sunderland, Ontario $ * New Home * Mature Age e Multi Policy * Non-Smoker pe PEEL MUTUAL INSURANCE COMPANY Convenient Monthly Payment Plans Available 80 Water Sit, [Port [Permmy 985-8448 on June 12. He described the mayor as "very help- ful." The mayor put a call into a local company to clear out the culverts, but they cleaned the wrong ditch, said Mr. Morgan. "I know he did what he could, so | asked him about a natural disaster relief fund, which could help me with the costs," he said, noting that the township sent out an insurance adjuster. Mr. Morgan said the adjustor told him no help would be available because policy states nat- ural flood damage is cov- ered only in "hurricane" sit- uations. Mr. Morgan has also placed calls to Premier Mike Harris and Durham MPP John O'Toole, seeking financial assistance. Disabled with knee replacements in both legs and on a fixed income, Mr. Morgan says he has no idea how he's going to repair his home. "I don't know, I really don't know," he said. "I want people to know that they may think they have (municipal) flood insur- ance, but they don't. There's no such thing in Ontario. If you have a bro- ken pipe, then yeah... but an actual flood, no way." Mayor Moffatt said that Regional Councillor Ken a Tom Morgan examines a ruined water heater in the basement of his Scugog Island home. A flash flood earlier this month caused extensive damage. Gadsden took a look at the situation and "had serious concerns with the septic tanks and wells being flooded... there could be contamination." He noted that Councillor Gadsden paid two teens $10 each to advise each homeowner in the neighbourhood that they should boil their PORT PERRY DENTAL OFFICE ¢ ® INSURANCE ASSIGNMENT ACCEPTED ® EVENING APPOINTMENTS AVAILABLE (WE COLLECT FROM INSURANCE COMPANIES) = DENTISTRY WHILE YOU SLEEP ® PAYMENT PLANS ARRANGED ~ ® SENIOR CITIZENS DISCOUNT ® GENERAL ANAESTHESIA AVAILABLE NEW PATIENTS WELCOME - PIZZA, SUBS © SWINGS water and have it tested." He was unaware if the regional health depart- ment had been contacted. "The township does the work there, and if it was not done right,' then we'll accept the responsibility for it," said Mayor Moffatt. "It seems to be one of those unusual acts of nature which every insur- ance company declines to take an interest in. It sounds like it was a 100- year storm, and how do you prepare for that?" the mayor added. "I can understand the position Mr. Morgan is in; the damage is mind-numb- ing. If there's anything we can legitimately do, we'll do it for him." Summer Hours DURHAM HEGION at Region's Waste Disposal sites The Region of Durham's Waste Disposal Sites located at1640 Ritson Rd. N. in Oshawa and 1623 Reach St., in Port Perry are regularly open Tuesday through Saturday, from 8:00am until 4:00pm. These two sites now offer extended summer hours. Every Thursday until October, we are open from 8:00am- untl 6:00pm Helping you with your waste disposal needs.