A Brainerd couple nearly saw their home tip after heavy flooding washed away a wall in their basement Monday night.
On Beaver Dam Road, Bonnie Davidson and her husband had quite the surprise Monday night when a wall in their basement "just went kaboom" in the rain. They heard a loud popping sound and her husband said it was just hail.
"Then I looked out the sliding glass door and I said, 'uh, no, the ground is sliding into the basement,'" Davidson said. "I didn't stop and realize if the ground goes, the wall goes."
A wall running the entire length of the house collapsed, save for a corner which held in place, Davidson said. Otherwise, their entire house would have tipped. Tuesday morning, they went to Brainerd City Hall and ran into Terry Quick of Quick Construction who volunteered to come look at the house.
Quick told the Davidsons their home was sliding and brought a crew in to prevent further damage. Their home is now propped up on 2x6 wood boards, to keep it from tipping. A block layer visited Wednesday afternoon and will provide the Davidsons with an estimate for rebuilding the wall.
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The Davidsons stayed in their camper Monday night and there was still plenty of water in the basement Tuesday night. The basement is finally free of standing water, she said, and now there are fans running to dry out the basement, which needs to happen before a new wall can be built.
Thankfully, the Davidsons didn't store much in their basement, so they didn't lose much with the flooding, Davidson said. This is the first time they've had flooding issues in 15 years of living at the home.
Before the storm, the Davidsons had been planning a rummage sale for this upcoming weekend. Despite the damage to their home, they're pressing on with the sale.
"I said to my husband, 'well, maybe we shouldn't have it,'" Davidson said. "But then we looked at that mess and said, 'uh, I think we need the money.'"
Lt. Grant Holloway of the Salvation Army in Brainerd said the organization is available for anyone who needs food, shelter or clothing in the wake of the flooding. The organization also has cleanup kits available at its location, 208 S. Fifth St. in Brainerd, for families experiencing water damage to homes.
"Cleanup kits provide families with a box with different tools, equipment and cleaning supplies that they'll need to start cleaning their houses back up as well," Holloway said.
SPENSER BICKETT may be reached at 218-855-5859 or spenser.bickett@brainerddispatch.com . Follow on Twitter at www.twitter.com/spenserbickett .
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