Record-breaking flooding swept across the state in mid-April, collapsing roads, drowning houses and overtopping dams.
According to State Representative Cam Cavitt, R-Cheboygan, the damage from the storm is still adding up.
Cavitt said chunks of ice from Lake Superior are floating up to homes, destroying decks, windows and garage doors. Propane tanks are floating away from houses, and some areas are experiencing a fuel shortage because of washed out roads.
“There’s all of these ancillary issues that are still going on,” Cavitt said. “It’s a little premature to talk about funding but we’re certainly going to fight hard for it.”
Many residents affected by the mass flooding are unsure how they are going to pay for the damage.
In Cadillac, Judy Allison says she never imagined her home would flood.
When she left her house, Allison says she only grabbed her pajamas and medication, thinking she could come back the next day.
By then, the flood waters were too high for Allison to save her belongings.
“A lot of the stuff can be replaced but certain pictures can't,” Allison said pictures of her parents, siblings and late husband are likely gone forever.
“That is worth more than anything I’ve ever had,” Allison said. The water was half way up the windows in Allison's home. “When I look at my house, I just want to cry,” she said.
Allison, like many Michigan residents, doesn’t have flood insurance and isn’t sure how she’ll pay for the damage or how long it may take.
Flower Butler and Matthew Williams are first time home owners in Cadillac. They bought Butler's childhood home in 2022.
“We were working and saving money to make it what we wanted to as a good first home,” Butler said. “I guess that won't be happening now.”
The couple said they never thought the flooding would get as bad as it did, so they put their belongings on the couch and counter tops, taking just a few pairs of clothes.
When they returned to their home, the water was more than three feet deep, Butler said.
“Our couches were floating when we got in through the window,” Butler said. “Our bed was floating, our washer and dryer were almost in a different room."
Butler said they grabbed what they could with plastic totes.
“We'd float the tote through the window, load it up, float it out to our vehicle, dump it in the vehicle and float it back in,” Butler said. “It was 35 degrees at the time… we were trying to go as quick as possible.”
Over the weekend, friends and family helped the couple get more out of their house. And as of Sunday, most of the water has been pumped out.
Butler and Williams are unsure how they’ll pay for the water damage without flood insurance.
An emergency relief fund has been created for Cadillac residents. The Cadillac Area Community foundation is collecting donations that will help fund immediate relief and long-term recovery.
Local and state officials are asking those affected by the disaster to report flood damage, to help secure federal relief.
Last year, many communities in northern Michigan sustained incredible damage from a record-breaking ice storm.
Cavitt was one representative who drafted legislation to provide $100 million in ice storm relief. The bill never advanced in the senate.
Cavitt says he hopes that doesn’t happen again this year.
“That's the kind of thing that frustrates me and makes you want to fight harder for Northern Michigan,” Cavitt said. “I'm praying that we don't have those type of hurdles.”
Cadillac city officials are holding a town hall on Wednesday to answer the communities’ questions and help those affected by the flood find relief.
