Residents along St. John’s River in DeLand brace for more flooding

Residents in one DeLand neighborhood along the St. John’s River are bracing for more flooding as they anticipate the river to rise. 

"There’s a battle going on in the backyards," said Jay Adair. 

Adair, a retired fire chief from Missouri says homes in his neighborhood on Hontoon Road and River Ridge Road are surrounded by waterways like the St. John’s River which also funnels water from Lake Beresford. 

He showed us his backyard, normally full of grass.

"I’m riverfront but not this kind of riverfront," he said. 

Some homes along Hontoon Road and River Ridge Road are doing OK; however, others on lower ground are watching as the water fill their front yards.

"You don’t want to lose everything you worked to put together," said resident Neil Bodin. 

Residents have been using sandbags to prepare as they anticipate the river to crest, leading to more flooding.

"Forty five hundred bags yesterday and this is probably a thousand or more so they go pretty quickly," said Missy Kelly. 

Adair says the fight is far from over.