SOUTH BETHANY, DE - Town leaders in South Bethany are looking into ways to mitigate flooding on York Road. According to neighbors, the road floods frequently during storms and high tides.
Heavy rain hit South Bethany on Wednesday when WBOC visited the neighborhood. Jane Vandell, who lives on one of the roads perpendicular to York Road, said rainy days can be worrisome to her and her neighbors due to frequent flooding on the road.
"One day last month I was going to go to the grocery store. I was on York Road, and I could see that there was water," Vandell said. "Once I got up there, I said 'no' and I turned around and went back home."
Vandell told WBOC that, over the thirty years she's owned a home in the neighborhood, the flooding has continued to get worse.
"What if you had a child that was ill? Or what if you were ill and you had to drive through that water," Vandell said. "That's just not something that I think is correct and I think it really needs to be addressed."
South Bethany Mayor Edie Dondero told WBOC Wednesday that an engineering firm is doing a study of the area. Dondero said the firm is studying the causes of the road's flooding, as well as preparing recommendations to make to town leaders on how to fix the issue.
According to Dondero, some possible solutions town leaders are looking into include elevating the road by roughly 6 inches, as well as installing a low-lying curb along the road. Dondero also said that, while the town has some money allocated to the projects, they will likely have to pursue more grants.
This was the driveway of another neighbor, Dave Wilson, on Friday. Wilson said he hopes whatever solution town officials decide on helps with mitigation.
"The flooding at York Road is a nuisance," Wilson said. "Something is better than nothing in this particular case, we're in a lower elevation of the town here at the Southern end."
South Bethany's Mayor said that she expects the engineering firm to give its recommendations by the end of December. After that, town leaders will then begin looking into financing the project.
Dondero also said that York Road is not the only road in the town that experiences this issue, and that South Bethany is not the only coastal town experiencing flooding issues. Dondero said she hopes more regional efforts begin to be made to help with these issues across the board.
