ZEPHYRHILLS, Fla. — More than one month since Hurricane Debby, a neighborhood in Zephyrhills is still dealing with flooding from the aftermath.
"I thought it would just recede down naturally, but then we're in the rainy season, so it just keeps coming and coming and coming and won't go down," said resident Jamie Riekens.
Neighbors on Burrows Road said a drainage ditch at a nearby mobile home park is to blame.
Riekens reached out to 10 Tampa Bay for help after communication with the mobile home park owners, the county and the Southwest Florida Water Management District (SWFWMD) was producing no results.
Riekens said water has never surrounded his property like this and others in the seven years he's lived there. He has to wear rainboots to go in and out of his home.
Despite the water receding in the last few days, it's still at a shin-deep level. Riekens said he and other neighbors are concerned over what the next storm could bring amid the hurricane season.
"No one wants to take responsibility for it, and I don't care who takes responsibility for it. Just fix it so we don't have to deal with this, and then make sure it doesn't happen again," Riekens said.
In a statement, a SWFWMD spokesperson wrote it conducted a site visit to the mobile home park this past Tuesday and observed flooding around Burrows Road.
"District staff spoke with residents and we are still investigating to determine the next steps," the spokesperson added.
Meanwhile, Heiler Communities, LLC, which owns the nearby Ramblewood Village mobile home park, stated it has "assessed the current conditions of our SWFWMD permitted drainage ditch and any possible actions that can be taken to potentially help mitigate our neighbors' flooding issues."
Riekens said a staff member from Pasco County also knocked on his door Friday upon being alerted of the flooding.
He said he and other affected neighbors just want actions that can get the flooding fixed.
"If they don't get this fixed, it's just going to get worse if we get a lot of rainfall," Riekens said. "It's a waiting game. I'm just going to have to take it day by day, and I'm not going to give up on calling all three of those places."