DEKALB COUNTY, Ga. — Dozens of metro Atlanta residents are without housing after flooding displaced them from their apartments.
Heavy rain pounded most of metro Atlanta Tuesday and caused the foundation of a DeKalb County apartment complex to collapse.
Residents of Marquis Parc on Montreal Road in Clarkston are looking for temporary housing.
Several residents sent photos to Channel 2 Action News, showing how high the flood waters rose and the damage to the ceiling of Building 46 at the complex.
We’re told the flooding mostly started behind the condominiums Tuesday afternoon.
People who live at the complex said the water just kept rising until eventually, the foundation broke apart.
“The hole got bigger and bigger, and now the upstairs is shifting,” said resident Amida Simmons.
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Emma Wright, a resident of the apartment complex, said she had complained about the flooding issue before and saw it coming.
"I warned them for months. Every time it rains, it comes all the way up to the back of the patio. It's like a swimming pool," Wright said.
"The fire department knocks and tells us, all of a sudden, we have to evacuate right away. Why? Because the building is collapsing.”
Wright, like many others, wants a permanent solution to the problem.
"This has been an ongoing problem,” Wright said of management. “Now we're displaced because of your negligence.”
DeKalb County firefighters said the water moved underneath the apartments and broke apart the foundation.
"We found that that moving water actually shifted the floor system,” DeKalb County Fire and Rescue Capt. Eric Jackson said.
Jackson said firefighters evacuated 12 apartments in Building 46.
The Metro Atlanta American Red Cross stepped in and helped 19 children and nearly 30 adults with food and temporary housing, sending the displaced residents to a nearby church.
"This can be a confusing and hectic time for a lot of people," David Abrohams with the Metro Atlanta Red Cross said.
Channel 2's Audrey Washington called the property manager Wednesday. He said he was too busy helping residents to answer any questions.
Cox Media Group
