With flood water rising in their low-lying area since June, a Hudson family displays grim humor while worrying over more rain.
By ALEX LEARY
Published August 13, 2003
[Times photo: Brendan Fitterer]
Shawn Mauldin, 29, walks through waist-high water in his father Ed's front yard on Thomas Boulevard in Hudson.
HUDSON - Auction No. 2945119563 on eBay promises to be "a great gift for someone who enjoys the unusual," sure to intrigue the "man or woman who has everything."
Bidding began at $1, but Charlotte Mauldin will probably let it go for nothing as long as the winner picks up their prize in person.
Better bring a boat.
Frustrated with the steady rain that has left as much as 6 feet of water on her property on Thomas Boulevard, and unsatisfied with county and federal relief efforts, Mauldin vented in front of her computer.
On Saturday, she offered flood water for sale. "Great for irrigation. With proper treatment, it may even be drinkable," the eBay sales pitch reads. "Not available in stores anywhere. We'll even throw in a few water moccasins to the lucky buyer."
Her husband, Ed Mauldin, said he shot 16 of the venomous snakes in the past week.
Wildlife abounds in what looks like Pasco County's newest nature preserve: Mauldin's yard. A blue heron jumped from one floating log to another in the back yard Tuesday while bullfrogs sang in the front.
"At night you almost can't sleep" because of the sounds, said Ed Mauldin. Standing thigh deep in murky water, he managed a smile.
"You try to make light of it as much as you can. But at a certain point, you lose the humor. It gets very depressing."
Water began accumulating in his low-lying neighborhood in June and continued to build. Last week's rain put it over the edge.
Mauldin, 51, estimates the damage at $50,000 and counting. Tools and machinery in his aircraft hangar, which serves as a garage, are ruined. The pool he installed two years ago is buckling from beneath.
The phone does not work, and the septic tank went out days ago. The family uses gas station restrooms and truck stop showers.
Possessions inside their home are dry, for now, but the floor insulation is soaked. Mauldin, who paid for the house in full, does not have insurance.
"Everything I have is here," he said. "I don't know what I'm going to do." He retired as a helicopter pilot in July but now is contemplating returning to work.
Mauldin, like other residents in the Highlands area of Hudson hit hard by flooding, is critical of the county's response.
According to Mauldin, he asked for help in pumping the water out, but was told there was not enough hose. He said he asked workers elevating the road to dump some at the driveway so the incline would not be so steep, but was told the material was strictly for roads. He said he asked about disaster relief last week but was told none was available yet as the county needed 25 submerged homes or businesses to qualify for federal aid.
Despite a lack of rain in the past two days, water was still building on his property Tuesday, Mauldin said. He worries about Thursday. "The television said there is a 70 percent chance of rain."
But there is one bright spot. The county on Tuesday declared a local state of emergency, meaning homeowners soon could be eligible for low interest loans or possibly grants.
The Mauldins could use the help. As of Tuesday evening, only one person - a friend of the Maudlins - had bid on their eBay listing.
And after the opening offer of $1, the bidding goes up in increments of 25 cents.
