VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla. – Don Phaneuf considers himself one of the lucky homeowners on Stone Island, a community on the north side of Lake Monroe near Deltona. Water came close to his home after Hurricane Ian, but never inside.
“There’s 250 homes out here, 68 of them got wrecked,” Phaneuf said. “These people right next door, that house has never flooded in all of the floods we’ve had but this time around they had water coming in their bedroom window.”
His neighbors, along with other homeowners in the community, are now suing the city of Deltona for the damage. A complaint filed in federal court this week claims the water did not come from nearby Lake Monroe, but from the east, a result of the city opening a flooding control structure to alleviate the Lake Theresa Basin. The lawsuit says the action sent “hundreds of millions of gallons of water to Stone Island.”
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News 6 reporter Catherine Silver spoke with one of the attorneys representing the homeowners on the phone Friday.
“Many of my clients who I visited personally are still actively engaged in rebuilding efforts either personally or through contractors even now,” said Thomas Allison.
Allison describes the losses and damages his clients have suffered as “catastrophic.” He says the city opened the flood control structure with the knowledge that the water would be redirected to Stone Island. The lawsuit alleges the city asked for permission from the St. Johns River Water Management District at least three times before and each time they were denied due to the anticipated impact on the surrounding areas.
“They decided that water can flow a certain direction, and if a city wants to do that for public purpose they can do so, but they have to pay the affected homeowners,” Allison said.
News 6 asked the city of Deltona for its perspective, but a spokesperson said they do not comment on pending litigation.
In October, our crews visited Stone Island to see the water as it flowed through the streets and damaged lift stations. Families say it took months for the water to recede, and in its wake, you can still see lines on the trees marking its peak. As you drive around the neighborhood, there are many renovation projects underway and some trailers sitting in driveways.
“You see people with travel trailers sitting in their front yard. They’re living in that because they can’t get in their house,” Phaneuf said.
Families hope to rebuild what they can, with whatever help they can get.
“A lot of people who live down the road over here, they’re putting a lot of new sod down, doing stuff like that,” Phaneuf said. “They’re still cleaning up.”
The lawsuit does not specify how much money the homeowners who are seeking damages are asking for. Instead, it asks for a jury to decide the full compensation.
You can read a statement from their attorneys below:
“Many of the residents of Stone Island suffered catastrophic losses and damage to their homes following the City’s operation of the flood control structure with the knowledge that the water would be directed into the property of the residents of Stone Island.
“We have seen, firsthand, the harm that the City’s decision caused. This is a tight knit community of primarily long term residents and the very face of their community has been changed, possibly forever.
“In bringing this suit, we are simply asking that the City compensate the residents of Stone Island for the losses that the residents have sustained based on the City’s action. And for some, those numbers may well be significant, but decisions have consequences, even for a municipality.”
Attorneys' statement
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