Some will abandon flooded homes, Cobb officials say

By Mary Lou Pickel

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Cobb County officials expect that some owners of flood-damaged homes will simply walk away from their residences because the losses are so great.

About 1,200 homes in Cobb County were severely damaged in last month’s historic flood, Cobb County Commission Chairman Sam Olens said.

He toured the flooded areas in south Cobb on Tuesday with three county commissioners and several members of Cobb’s state legislative delegation.

Many owe much more on their homes than the houses will ever be worth because of the damage and their location in a flood-prone area, Olens said.

“A lot of these folks will probably walk up to the mortgage company and say, ‘It’s yours,’ ” Olens said.

“It’s terrible. They’ll walk away with nothing — no equity and no possessions,” said state Rep. Don Wix (D-Mableton), who joined the tour.

Cobb County Manager David Hankerson said residents with severely-damaged homes could ask the county to buy them out. But, he said, the county will not have enough money to buy out everybody. In fact, the county receives grants each year from the federal government to buy only about eight to 10 houses in flooded areas, he said.

“You could do eight to 10 houses for decades and not finish,” Olens said.

Hankerson said the county will apply for more grants this year, but the competitive FEMA awards are limited to homes in the flood plain that flood frequently. Many of the affected homes in unincorporated Cobb won’t meet those guidelines, he said.

The 500-year flood left an estimated 700 homes severely damaged in Austell, 100 in Powder Springs and about 400 in unincorporated Cobb County, Olens said.

In the Autumn Trace subdivision in Powder Springs, yellow inspection notices dotted the doors of several homes.

“This subdivision got wiped out here,” Powder Springs Mayor Pat Vaughn said, detailing the losses to the legislative delegation.

On one house, the notice read: “Restricted Access. No night occupancy.”

The house smelled sour and the inspector noted that the house suffered damage to its drywall, cabinets, carpet, insulation, hardwood floors, doors and trim.

Cobb County has sent cleanup crews to pick up debris left by the side of the road. On Tuesday a little excavator with a big claw scooped up wood, clothes, carpet, insulation and other remains of the insides of one home.

Farther down the street, a huge industrial dryer pumped hot air, heated to about 200 degrees, inside the windows of a home to dry it out and kill mold and mildew.