WESTERNPORT, Md. — In a town left behind by the federal government, residents are turning to their tight-knit community to recover from devastating floods that hit in May.
Along Main Street, in Westernport's Municipal building, boxes are stacked high with items needed for flood recovery. Families filed into the building looking for supplies to clear out mud and mold from their homes.
Watch as the community comes together following storms
"It's not just with home repair and disrepair. There's a need for supplies, medical care as a result, secondary to the flood, we're seeing a lot of mud, and black mold, as well as a need for lead testing," said Lorena DeLeon from Maryland Physicians Care.
Beth Bingham, vice president of the Green and Healthy Homes Initiative, brought specialized supplies to address health concerns caused by water damage.
"Making sure that the asthma triggers that are in a home, which come up a lot when there's water in a home when there's been water intrusion, so we brought out air purifiers and dehumidifiers and cleaning supplies that are nontoxic, and vacuum cleaners and other like air quality monitors to monitor in the house to ensure that people can see if the asthma levels are going to be high for their family and they can adjust what they need to adjust within their home to protect their family," Bingham said.
"The mold out here after a storm has been really bad. So, the dehumidifiers and air purifiers are huge helps," Bingham said.
For residents like Dick Magruder, this help is still desperately needed. The flooding hit his house hard, and the recovery process continues months later.
"We have trouble down in our house anyway when it rains hard water will come up our drain, so we were down in there taking care of that, pumping it out with a pump, and we didn't know all this was going on up here. We had no word. So my wife went out and her and my daughter, they said, 'hey, water's coming up the back street.' And all of a sudden it just came down our steps, just pounding. And it was nothing you could do then, it was very traumatic," Magruder said.
"We are still in the process of cleaning up. Still some mud lingering here and there, in hidden places, but, we were able to replace our appliances and our furnace is still out. Yeah, waiting on the furnace," Magruder said.
With colder months approaching, Magruder is concerned about his family's heating situation.
"I'm very concerned. Right now I'm working on it, but I'm no furnace mechanic, so you know we're hoping we can get some help with it," Magruder said.
The state asked FEMA for assistance, but the request was denied. The Trump administration said the damage could be handled by state and local governments, leaving residents to handle recovery on their own.
"Very frustrated, but on the same token we've been very appreciative of what we've gotten so far with the help of we've gotten back so but on the government side of it, I'm frustrated, yes," Magruder said.
Lead poisoning tests are being conducted for children who live in older homes that may still have lead paint or pipes.
Maryland Physicians Care is in the community filling needs where they can, but they acknowledge they can't fix everything.
"I think they're lacking financial support in order to be able to cover the repair costs for the damage that the flood did, I think that's the main thing. A lot of the homes were flooded in the basement and first floors, and so there is a need to cover the cost of being able to replace their HVACs as well as do mold remediation, remove the drywall and insulation that was affected," DeLeon said.
The group continues providing assistance in the community this weekend.
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