Car hits hydrant, causing washout, flooding apartments in Arlington

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Residents of the Golden Shores apartment complex woke up to flooding Tuesday morning after a car wiped out a fire hydrant at Arlington Road and Hare Avenue.

The crash just before 2 a.m. caused a massive washout that sent water pouring down the hill toward the Hare Avenue apartment complex, and residents of at least five units were left to sweep the soggy mess out of their homes.

One woman called it an absolute nightmare, saying she woke up about 2:30 a.m. to the water in her bedroom.

“I actually had a biopsy this morning to go to,” Tiffany Revelle-Harris said. “I had to cancel because I’ve got to figure out how I’m going to get this water out of my house. It’s draining, to say the least. Some people already went to work knowing that their house is flooded but because they have to make ends meet, they have to go.”

Revelle-Harris said she worked for hours to get the water out of her apartment.

“My rugs were wet. I’m like, ‘What is going on?’ So, I walk in my kitchen and water is everywhere. And I do mean everywhere,” she said. “I’ve been trying to sweep out water for the last three hours. This is ridiculous.”

Servpro came out and was seen pumping water out of the units Tuesday morning.

Another woman said this isn’t the first time her unit has flooded because it’s in a low-lying area.

“The way that the apartment is built, water is going to be in regardless. When I opened the door, water wasn’t coming in through the door. It was coming in through the wall,” Treasure Moody said. “I called my mom and I said, ‘Mom, I can’t go to work. I can’t go to school.’ I started crying because my car was stuck in the mud, and I couldn’t get my car out.”

Moody’s mother, Theretha, said she’s concerned about the health of her daughter and other residents of the apartment.

“It’s been an ongoing issue,” Theretha Moody said. “And when water dries up, it leaves damage.”

News4JAX reached out to the property managers by phone and email. We also went inside the rental office, and the people inside told us they did not want to comment about this.

Some of these residents told us they’re now looking into moving.

The washout at the hydrant nearly wiped out a sidewalk next to busy Arlington Road.

JEA was out to turn off the hydrant and workers showed up just before 9 a.m. to try to fill the hole with large pieces of equipment and pounds of dirt.

The Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department said no one was injured in the crash.


About the Author:

Ashley Harding joined the Channel 4 news team in March 2013. She reports for and anchors The Morning Show.