Help needed in Ravenswood as cleanup begins
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Volunteers help Ravenswood residents unload waterlogged furniture into dumpsters. Photo: Arika Herron/Axios
Everything. That's what several residents of the Ravenswood neighborhood told volunteers they needed help with when cleanup efforts began Tuesday morning.
Why it matters: The north-side neighborhood was one of the hardest hit by last weekend's disastrous floods, so inundated that some areas are still inaccessible.
The big picture: Recovery will be measured in weeks and months, rather than days, for areas where water washed away roads and rose to rooflines.
Zoom in: Mayor Joe Hogsett toured Ravenswood on Tuesday and told Axios the challenges are extensive but, "I want the residents of Indianapolis to know the city is ready, willing and able to do anything and everything we can to address their immediate needs."
- "I also don't want to sow the seeds of false hope," says Hogsett. "This is going to take a while, and the damages that we sustained over the course of the last week have been profound."
- The city has deployed dumpsters for flood debris in the Ravenswood and Rocky Ripple neighborhoods, as well as crews with trash and boom trucks to help residents clean up.
What they're saying: "I have been in this neighborhood 53 years, and I've seen floods. … This was just like no other," Michele Lowe tells Axios. She was at Riverwood Park on Tuesday with her French bulldog, Romeo, looking for help pumping out the water still filling her basement.
State of play: Pumps and hoses are some of the biggest needs, said Ashlee York, a volunteer helping coordinate assistance efforts.
- Aside from moving water, needs vary, she said.
- "Some people need help with demolition. Some people need help with supplies," York tells Axios. "Some people just need support."
- Donations for the Ravenswood community are being taken at Glendale Christian Church.
- Box fans, cleaning supplies (including mops, buckets, gloves, sponges and bleach) and laundry detergent are some of the biggest needs, in addition to cash donations.
What's next: Hogsett says he's "anxiously awaiting" FEMA approval of the state's application for a major disaster declaration, which would provide individuals access to federal aid.
- In the meantime, the city urges residents to thoroughly document all damage by taking photos and videos, tracking serial numbers on damaged items, documenting the recovery process and utilizing the city's damage reporting form.
- Do not apply for individual aid through FEMA until official guidance has been issued. Doing so prematurely could delay help if a declaration is approved.
The bottom line: The Ravenswood neighborhood isn't waiting on the federal government or anyone else to start cleaning up.
- The work will continue through at least the rest of the week, and probably longer.
- Becca Panyard will be there helping to get volunteers where they're needed most while she waits for her own home to be habitable again.
- Even though her finished basement filled with 8 feet of water, Panyard said she has no plans to leave Ravenswood.
- "It's just been really a peaceful place to live," she said. "I think, especially after this, I can't imagine myself living anywhere else in Indianapolis. These are really my people."