MEMPHIS, Tenn. — The pictures only told part of the story. It’s more than a one time thing.
“We`ve had to rip up out floors three times,” said one homeowner. “We are sick of it.”
Whitehaven residents said they have been dealing with major flooding problems for several years and despite years of promises of help, nothing was done until Harold Collins came along.
“I just wanna applaud him for getting started with this situation,” said one neighbor.
However, they criticized him too on Monday.
The help he promised has come at a snails pace.
Houses are still flooding, drainage improvements have been slow and they are still waiting for cash to help rebuild.
They may have a long way to go, but these residents said it’s much further than they were able to get without Collins, and now he’s lost his bid for mayor, Whitehaven’s losing the man who has championed to fix the flooding problem which it can’t seem to shake.
“I never knew the magnitude of it until I took the tour myself and walked the ditches and into the homes,” Collins told WREG.
Collins vowed to work with whoever wins his seat, to make sure they continue the push to fix the flooding.
But residents said they were still nervous about losing the man who’s held the city’s feet to the fire, and hoped to find someone else who carries the ball the rest of the way.
Collins said that should be a given.
“We ask the people to send us to City Hall and they gave us the job. It`s our responsibility to do the work,” said Collins.
