NEWAYGO COUNTY, Mich. (April 20, 2014) – For many people who live along the Muskegon River, Easter Sunday was anything but traditional.
After the Muskegon River broke its banks one week ago and the governor issued a state of disaster, people were able to go back to their homes now that most of the flood waters have gone back to where they belong.
Families could be seen throughout the area Sunday moving what was inside of their homes out onto their lawns. Vicky Voogd, a homeowner in Devil’s Hole, filled her yard with belongings and divided them into storage or garbage. She said nearly a foot and a half of water climbed up their walls and left a path of destruction.
“I’ve never seen it come up that quick,” Voogd said. “The neighbor said after I left, it was maybe a half hour (and) we were under water on the back side where we wouldn’t have been able to drive out.”
The couple has owned their home for eight years. A place where they once watched their grandchildren grow and play is now badly damaged.
“We have to have an electrician in, the health department, building inspections … new drywall throughout it all, and heating systems,” Voogd said.
Even though most of what she and her husband built is now destroyed, she said there’s so much more to be thankful for. “It’s just stuff, and no one’s lost a life, and the Lord has just blessed us. He has blessed us with having each other.”
