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Peace River dangerously close to overflowing, City of Bartow to host community meeting

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Published  August 13, 2024 5:31pm EDT
Bartow
FOX 13 News

Peace River dangerously close to overflowing, City of Bartow to host community meeting

FOX 13's Carla Bayron reports from Bartow.

BARTOW, Fla. - Hurricane Debby dropped a lot of water on Polk County and now the Peace River is dangerously close to overflowing.

And if more rain comes, some neighborhoods in the city of Bartow and its wastewater treatment plant could get flooded.

A state of civil emergency has been issued in parts of Polk County after Hurricane Debby.

"It's the first time I can recall that we have gone towards the peak of Hurricane season at or near flood stage," said Jay Robinson, the Fire Chief of the Bartow Fire Dept.

Because of all the rain, the Peace River is at an elevated level and more water is still on the way.

The river reached 7.7 feet on Tuesday, and it's projected to reach 7.9 feet on Wednesday once the water drains down from up north.

There's no immediate threat at the moment, but the city will be going door-to-door this week notifying residents in neighborhoods prone to flooding.

They're also coming up with preparations to protect the city's wastewater treatment plant which is located on the east side close to the Peace River.

"We are working with an engineer and looking at doing a berm so that will be coming along," Mayor Trish Pfeiffer. "It can take months to do that."

The plant is currently in the midst of a $30 million expansion.

The city's looking into a long-term, permanent solution which would require state or federal funding.

"We're kicking off the hurricane season on almost day one, then we're a little nervous about what's going to come the next couple of months, but whatever it is we're going to be ready," said Pfeiffer.

The city will be hosting a community meeting on Thursday, Aug. 15 for residents in the neighborhoods prone to flooding. They’ll be discussing the river's current condition.

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