Lake home hangs in the balance

Friday, May 5, 2017

Persistent rainfall that’s nearing eight inches overall for the last 10 days has just about pushed some Putnam County residents over the edge.

And now apparently it’s trying to take a lakeside home or two with it.

Rain-moistened ground and high winds have put at least one Heritage Lake home in peril as the ground beneath it gave way Thursday afternoon, dumping the lower deck of one home into the lake, sinking two boat docks and eating away at the supports for an upper deck and the home in general.

“You see things like that in California, but I’ve never seen anything like that around here,” Putnam County Emergency Management Agency Director Tom Helmer told the Banner Graphic Friday. “The ground is so saturated, it just slid down there.”

The mini-landslide also took with it a seawall used to deter erosion, Helmer added.

The elements put the lakefront property at 16 and 17 Mill Springs Rd. in jeopardy of sliding in the water.

“It’s different,” Helmer said of the situation, “you’ve got to feel bad for these people.”

No names were available for the homeowners, who Helmer said apparently use the two-story house as a summer home, according to neighbors.

The owners were on the scene sometime Friday morning, Helmer said, explaining that they reportedly moved items within the home from the east side to the west to put more weight at the back end of the house in an effort to balance things out.

Meanwhile, a barge equipped with a crane loomed in the lake waters in front of the home, working to stabilize the structure.

Ground surrounding the adjacent home gave way at one corner as well, Helmer said.

No damage estimate was available for either Heritage Lake structure.

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  • A photograph of this would have been a good journalistic move. Just saying.

    -- Posted by Carla Hurst-Chandler on Sat, May 6, 2017, at 8:02 AM
  • Carla: You took the words right out of my mouth.

    -- Posted by Ben Dover on Sat, May 6, 2017, at 9:21 AM
  • it was on tv with video and comments

    -- Posted by Falcon9 on Sat, May 6, 2017, at 10:22 AM
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