{"id":981583,"date":"2026-08-05T04:37:16","date_gmt":"2026-08-05T04:37:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/981583\/"},"modified":"2026-08-05T04:37:16","modified_gmt":"2026-08-05T04:37:16","slug":"cincinnati-residents-demand-answers-as-they-deal-with-flood-damage-sewage","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/981583\/","title":{"rendered":"Cincinnati residents demand answers as they deal with flood damage, sewage"},"content":{"rendered":"

Download the FREE FOX19 NOW news app for iPhone <\/b><\/a><\/p>\n

Download the FREE FOX19 NOW news app for Android<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n

CINCINNATI (WXIX) – Cincinnati leaders are still looking for ways to solve the city\u2019s flooding issues as residents and businesses continue to deal with sewage contamination and flood damages from July\u2019s historic rainfall. <\/p>\n

Between 5 and 6 inches of rain accumulated in East End neighborhoods <\/a>on July 17, resulting in sewer backup, manhole overflows, and basement and street flooding. The area was hit hard with a second round of heavy rainfall and flash floods three days later. <\/p>\n

During Tuesday\u2019s Climate, Environment & Infrastructure Committee meeting, residents were hoping to get answers to their problems.<\/p>\n

Jacob Bailey and his family moved to Hyde Park<\/a> about eight weeks ago. He says the floods cost them about $15,000 in losses, including one of their vehicles. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt was a big move for us. I\u2019m getting emotional because I really thought moving here, I was helping my family get a life with more opportunity,\u201d Bailey told city council members. \u201cThe amount of loss we\u2019ve had is not only money, but also security. My kids can\u2019t play in our back yard because it\u2019s contaminated with human waste. It\u2019s been two weeks since the flooding. We still haven\u2019t had anyone out to clean up the waste.\u201d <\/p>\n

Some Mt. Lookout businesses have not received help<\/a> from the city either, and have been hit several times by flooding in the past, according to Brian Spitler, President of the Mt. Lookout Community Council. <\/p>\n

The Crystalary,<\/a> located on Delta Avenue, has been closed since July 17, Spitler says. <\/p>\n

\u201cMt. Lookout has been raising the alarm about stormwater and sewer flooding for more than seven years,\u201d he said. \u201cWe flagged inadequate drainage as new development went in, and warned that our aging sewers couldn\u2019t keep up. This is not new.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bailey warns that if action is not taken soon, this is \u201csomething that could kill\u201d neighborhoods like Hyde Park and Mt. Lookout. <\/p>\n

\u201cIf people start moving out, the people that can afford to sell their properties at a loss will, property values will plummet, businesses will leave. That\u2019s how you start a death spiral on a community,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n

Like Bailey, John Meninger with the Hyde Park Community Council is looking for a solution, especially since flooding is a recurring issue. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe would like the conversation to move to a proactive approach to handling this,\u201d Meninger says. \u201cWe understand that while these extreme events may not be able to be handled, there should be a plan towards a resilience system that can handle things that exceed a designed event.\u201d <\/p>\n

Council member Seth Walsh, who was frustrated with the city\u2019s response to the floods, says a solution could cost the city billions. <\/p>\n

\u201cAt some point, if you\u2019re one of these residents \u2026 [flooding is] happening over and over and over. The answer to this problem is going to cost us billions of dollars and decades to repair,\u201d Walsh said. \u201cWe gotta get really really proactive now.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"FamiliesFamilies dealing with sewage backups say more affluent neighborhoods get faster response(WXIX)\"AnAn apartment building’s basement in Hyde Park flooded due to extreme rainfall on July 17, 2026.(Mary LeBus\/FOX19 NOW)<\/p>\n

RELATED |<\/b> Evanston, Kennedy Heights residents say flooding help is slow, unequal<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n

City council members passed a motion that would require the administration to evaluate long-term solutions for flooding, such as green infrastructure, improving stormwater systems and modernizing flood gates. <\/p>\n

An amendment was also added so that the Metropolitan Sewer District could implement a surface charge on developers, which could address runoff from water-resistant surfaces. <\/p>\n

As for federal assistance, Cincinnati Asst. Fire Chief Matt Flagler says it likely will not come because the damage \u2013 which was severe \u2013 does not qualify for funding from the Federal Emergency Management Agency. <\/p>\n

However, Flagler says the city is still reaching out to other state and federal entities to help with recovery efforts. <\/p>\n

Climate change is creating stronger storms, more flooding<\/b><\/p>\n

Data from the city\u2019s Office of Environment and Sustainability indicates storm intensity and rainfall accumulation have worsened in Cincinnati, likely because of climate change. <\/p>\n

According to a city presentation, rainfall has increased by 10% from 1970 to 2025, and the annual precipitation has increased by 0.26 inches per decade since 1896. <\/p>\n

On top of that, rainfall is becoming more localized, hovering over certain parts of the city, like Madisonville, Hyde Park, Mt. Lookout, Oakley and Kennedy Heights. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe world is getting warmer. Cincinnati is getting warmer,\u201d says Oliver Kroner with the Office of Environment and Sustainability. \u201cWe also experience what is called the urban heat island effect \u2026 and with heat, you see evaporation and concentrations of water in the atmosphere.\u201d <\/p>\n

Kroner says that for every 1-degree increase, there is a 4% increase in water vapor, the fuel for a storm. <\/p>\n

\u201cThese three factors together shape our future,\u201d Kroner said. \u201cWe will have to be very intentional and strategic in our adaptation strategies to prepare for the future.\u201d <\/p>\n

RELATED | <\/b>Duck Creek floodgate did not close due to \u2018mechanical malfunction,\u2019 city says<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n

What comes next? <\/b><\/p>\n

Flood recovery is still ongoing, along with frustration from residents and businesses. <\/p>\n

Cincinnati Mayor Aftab Pureval <\/a>previously announced $1 million set aside to help those impacted by the floods. City council will vote on that measure Wednesday. <\/p>\n

See a spelling or grammatical error in our story? Please click here to report it<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Do you have a photo or video of a breaking news story? Send it to us here<\/a> <\/b>with a brief description.<\/p>\n

Copyright 2026 WXIX. All rights reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Download the FREE FOX19 NOW news app for iPhone Download the FREE FOX19 NOW news app for Android…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":981584,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[23],"tags":[394034,394023,394038,394021,87796,139666,394013,104,394033,4282,337942,10595,394024,394032,394029,394020,394017,394012,394014,27586,394036,10109,394039,394028,394015,746,394031,394041,8774,394030,394035,394026,228085,394016,394025,623,337941,139665,394043,394042,394037,224,394011,394040,394045,20038,394018,50,100132,394009,394044,85,394027,8152,159,394019,13233,394022,38251,939,21951,67,132,394010,68,10639,139664],"class_list":["post-981583","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-environment","tag-a-death-spiral-sewage","tag-a-death-spiral-cincinnati-residents-fear-flooding-will-destroy-their-neighborhoods","tag-1-million-aide","tag-000-in-losses","tag-87796","tag-139666","tag-brandon-neely","tag-breaking-news","tag-businesses-still-waiting-for-help-as-city-looks-for-flood-solutions","tag-channel","tag-channel-19-news","tag-cincinnati","tag-cincinnati-city-council-vote-on-flooding","tag-cincinnati-families","tag-cincinnati-flooding-crisis-leaders-warn-fixes-could-cost-billions","tag-cincinnati-leaders-knew-flooding-was-coming-residents-say-the-city-didnt-act","tag-cincinnati-looks-to-green-infrastructure","tag-cincinnati-mayor","tag-cincinnati-neighborhoods","tag-cincinnati-news","tag-cincinnati-residents-demand-answers-as-they-deal-with-flood-damage","tag-climate","tag-climate-change-is-creating-stronger-storms","tag-climate-change-making-flooding-worse","tag-deadly-storm","tag-environment","tag-environment-infrastructure-committee","tag-evanston-floods","tag-flash-flooding","tag-flood-damage-still-plaguing-cincinnati-neighborhoods-weeks-later","tag-flood-damage-still-plaguing-cincinnatians-weeks-later","tag-flood-hazards","tag-flood-zone","tag-flooded-basements","tag-flooding-issues-in-cincinnati","tag-fox","tag-fox-19","tag-fox19","tag-hyde-park-floods","tag-kennedy-heights-floods","tag-local-politicvs","tag-los-angeles","tag-mayor-aftab-pureval","tag-more-flooding","tag-mt-lookout-floods","tag-neighborhood","tag-new-fees-to-combat-worsening-floods","tag-news","tag-oakley","tag-oakley-cincinnati","tag-oakley-floods","tag-political-news","tag-residents-still-dealing-with-flooding","tag-safety","tag-science","tag-seven-years-of-warnings-mt-lookout-residents-say-city-ignored-flood-concerns","tag-sewage","tag-sewage-in-the-backyard-cincinnati-families-still-waiting-for-help","tag-storm-damage","tag-trending","tag-trending-news","tag-united-states","tag-unitedstates","tag-urban-flash-flooding","tag-us","tag-water-rescue","tag-wxix"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":"Validation failed: Text character limit of 500 exceeded"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/981583","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=981583"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/981583\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/981584"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=981583"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=981583"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=981583"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}