Residents in Yonkers neighborhood say flooding has been constant since Hurricane Ida

They tell News 12 they have spent tens of thousands of dollars to repair their homes, but with no solution in sight, they say they will be forced to continue to pay.

Emily Young

May 31, 2024, 11:02 PM

Updated 125 days ago

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Residents on Robert Lane in Yonkers say they still have constant flooding issues since Hurricane Ida.
They tell News 12 they have spent tens of thousands of dollars to repair their homes, but with no solution in sight, they say they will be forced to continue to pay.
"I'm desperate, I have PTSD, my life doesn't exist. I cannot go away, I cannot leave the area," homeowner Kevin Rooney told News 12.
The reason is because every time it rains, their basements fill with at least 1 inch of water, and so begins a routine that the neighbors have choreographed to perfection.
"I immediately go to my neighbor's house and, we, together, pump out his house before it fills up and then fills up my house," Rooney explained.
"I mean it comes this close to my electric power and my boiler every time," said his next door neighbor Ralph Saragiotis.
"Then I have to squeegee out all the human waste, toilet paper and disgusting debris left from the sewage, " Rooney said.
It doesn't end there.
"And then after that we set up humidifiers fans and leave the doors open, as long as we possibly can to get the humidity down so there's' no mold," added Rooney.
All of this comes at a considerable expense.
"Every time I have to buy deodorizer, disinfectant, tools to deal with this, we've bought numerous pumps, its a constant battle," Rooney said.
They say they've been reaching out to the city for years for help.
"We can't just wait for a master plan to get 5 billion dollars from the state and start working on it... I mean, maybe some people can wait, I don't think I can," Rooney explained.