By MELISSA PEACOCK

LAPLACE – There were no cans or trash visibly protruding from drains in the Cambridge/Colony subdivision but numerous residents said drains were not working properly when Tropical Storm Isidore blew through LaPlace last week.

Standing water in the streets coupled with heavy traffic through the Cambridge and Colony subdivisions brought water up to resident’s doorsteps. Less than a week later, some homeowners ripped out soaked carpeting, while others repaired damaged lawns.

“I am too old to lift sandbags. I have one lung and I am diabetic,” said Linda Greenwalt. “Yet I was outside in the rain trying to keep my house from flooding. I was standing outside yelling at people to slow down.”

Greenwalt said heavy traffic through the Colony subdivision during the storm’s passage created waves that threatened homes and properties in the neighborhood. She called 911 multiple times, asking operators for barricades to keep excess traffic out of the neighborhood.

“They told me three times that they were going to put barricades out there,” Greenwalt said. “I was so gullible, so truthful in my own business, I really though that they were going to bring barricades. I told the neighbors not to worry. The next day they asked me, ‘Linda, where are your barricades?'”

But flooding was not the only problem residents in the subdivisions witnessed first-hand. Lawns were shredded by cars trying to avoid the flooded streets and cars spinning tires on lawns in residential communities.

“This guy started through the water and his car started sputtering,” Greenwalt said. “When he went through the neighbors yard he spun his tires.” Greenwalt said that several of the neighbors had only recently put new sod down.

“I said, ‘Please don’t tear up the lawn,'” Greenwalt said. “He called me a (curse word) and told me to get back in the house.” Greenwalt again dialed 911 when another neighbor confronted the individual about destroying the yard.

“They told me that they could not get back here because of the water,” Greenwalt said. “I could not have police protection.”

That was not the only car that Greenwalt and other neighbors saw drive across lawns during the night.

Captain Michael Tregre, of the St. John the Baptist Parish Sheriff’s Office, said the sheriff’s office does have trucks to respond to emergencies during floods. But during natural disasters the office has a number of emergency calls to respond to and they are not always able to get to every call. Priority calls take precedent, according to Tregre.

“I guess that was not a priority at that time,” Tregre said. “We normally go back into flooded areas with a duely truck. We have some officers that will use their own vehicles when a situation arises.”

Civil Defense officials are responsible for determining what streets need barricades.

Greenwalt said she is not indifferent to the plight of officers out on the street during disasters. But if an officer can not respond then residents need to be told, she said.

“If this is the way it is going to be, then I do not want to live in St. John Parish,” Greenwalt said. “I want to know – can we get the drains pumped out? Who do we contact? Can we get barricades? If we buy our own can we barricade our street?”

Several residents said they do not understand the policies concerning drainage and barricades. Residents said they would be willing to pay additional costs for drainage and barricading before and during storms.

“I want to know why are drains are not clean,” Greenwalt said. “If I am responsible for it, then why didn’t I get a notice that said that a storm is coming and they need to be cleaned.”

Greenwalt will attend the next St. John the Baptist Parish Council meeting to ask council members those very questions. But even that may be too late.

Hurricane Lili is headed for the Gulf of Mexico and forecasters said there is a possibility the powerful storm could hit Louisiana by Thursday.

Currently, sheriff’s office officials are meeting daily with Civil Defense representatives for information on Hurricane Lili.

The sheriff’s office has not had time to “back down” from preparations made for Tropical Storm Isidore, Captain Tregre said, and that could make a significant difference in the parish government’s preparation for the impending storm.