Flood recovery threatens to erase one small town

FEMA buyouts and demolition of flood damaged homes will change the face of Cedar Rapids and Iowa City.

But the painful signs of progress are also showing up in the smallest communities.

For instance, in unincorporated West Rochester along the Cedar River in Cedar County, the area is disappearing one home at a time.

Before the flood of June 2008 you could find a dozen homes here tucked away in this secluded area. Contractors are now knocking down one a day, and before too long you won't find a whole lot left.

Wednesday was not a happy day for Tom Wessel. High water destroyed his home on the banks of the Cedar River 15 months ago. But this was a day it actually disappeared.

"I've been here for 21 years. You start thinking back on all the Christmases, holidays, memories come back you know," Wessel said.

Thirteen homes clustered together in this riverbank neighborhood for years. When the demolition is complete, only five families will remain in either rebuilt homes or new construction.

Jack Wonick built on top of a hill and watched his old house come down on Wednesday. "It was a little tough. I stood on my garage and took pictures of it as they started to take it down," Wonick said.

"It's going to change the neighborhood quite dramatically. I talked to people as we do them. Some have lived here 30 years," demolition contractor Bruce Barnhart explained.

Many of the self described "river rats" thought they knew how to cope with the threat of high water. Many had lived along the river for decades. But in June 2008 the river proved them wrong.

There are just five houses to go now. Then this tiny riverbank neighborhood will be pretty much just a memory.

Dave Franzman, KCRG-TV