NORTH PORT, Fla. — Neighbors on one North Port street are calling on the city to do more after experiencing repeated flooding during big storms.
"It's just so frustrating," said Ken Scott, who lives on Cuthbert Avenue street, just south of Price Boulevard.
WATCH: Neighbors share pictures of flooding after recent storms:
When severe storms hit, neighbors say the street becomes submerged, with water taking hours to recede. Scott said his wife can't drive through the water, and has to park up to a mile away.
"I've had damage done to my truck, I've had damage done to one of my cars," Scott said.
Another neighbor, Frank Casey, said people will drive over his lawn by accident because they can't see the road.
North Port needs to do a better job cleaning up swales on the street, Scott said, pointing to overgrown vegetation and trash on the side of the road. The nearby drainage canal which runs parallel to Cuthbert also needs to be cleaned out, Scott said.
Casey said he's repeatedly asked the city about lowering the canal to hold more water. But, Casey said, he's been told the city draws from the canals for it's water supply.
"Nobody has given me a really definitive answer as to why these canals can't be lowered," Casey said.
Casey did say North Port's Public Works department has been very responsive in the past. The department helped Casey convert ineffective swales on his property into catch basins. But until something is done about the canal, Casey said, he doesn't believe the issue will go away.
City spokesperson Madison Ingalls said North Port has crews that regularly maintain swales and culverts. She said the system is functioning as it should, even if it takes a little extra time for water to go away.
"The system may look overwhelmed momentarily, it does usually go back to normal, it just takes a little longer," Ingalls said.
The area around Cuthbert Avenue got almost four inches of rain last Wednesday, according to FOX 4 Certified Meteorologist Katie Walls. That is around half the monthly average for that area.
If there is a major issue, people can make a report on the North Report app, Ingalls said, or call Public Works customer service at 941-240-8050.
Scott said he's reached out to the city, but has only seen crews putting up warning signs on the road.
"All I'm asking is just please fix the problem," Scott said.
Ingalls advised people to call if swales remain backed up for more than 72 hours, but notes culverts are the homeowners' responsibility.
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