Evacuated Sandy Springs apartment residents allowed to return home

Residents of a Sandy Springs apartment complex who were forced to leave their homes after Wednesday night’s heavy rain compromised the dam on a small pond were allowed to return home late Friday morning, officials said.

Sharon Kraun, communications director for the city of Sandy Springs, said pumps draining water from the nearly quarter-acre pond at The Falls at Sandy Springs “were successful in reducing water levels to ease pressure on the dam.”

She said the complex’s management company will install a temporary spillway at the dam to maintain the current water level while they work on a permanent repair.

“Based on the current situation, it has been deemed conditionally safe for residents to return to their apartments,” Kraun said just before 11 a.m. Friday.

About 100 residents were evacuated after several inches when Wednesday night’s storm damaged the dam and caused a gas leak.

One lane of Roswell Road had been closed so gas crews could reach an underground valve and for authorities to drain the lake, but Kraun said all lanes of the busy thoroughfare would be reopened by 11 a.m. Friday.