BILLINGS — A street in Billings turned into a shallow lake Sunday night after a fire hydrant leak sent water flooding on the 3500 block of Cook Avenue, soaking lawns, swamping driveways, and seeping into a garage. For many residents, it was just the latest in a long line of water woes that has gone on for years.
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Homeowners reported that water started gushing onto the street around 9 p.m. Chelsea Lower, who lives on the block, discovered the growing pool of water spreading across the gravel.
“I was looking out the window, and I'm like, 'There is water, and it's not raining. Where is it coming from?'" said Lower. “It's a lot of water. I mean, it was pouring. It looked like a river was coming through here.”
According to Public Works Director Debi Meling, the source was a leak on a hydrant branch at the end of the street and did not impact homes. According to Lower, city crews were able to quickly fix the problem but were stretched thin due to multiple other water leaks across Billings. Several large, muddy puddles were left that lingered to the next day.
“We've had water with rain, but not this much. I mean, it was pretty bad. I was getting nervous. We do have a sump pump in our crawl space, but it does a good job, but it's still pretty frustrating," said Lower. "The water can't go anywhere. There's nowhere for it to go, so it's just going to sit until it dries out from the sun.”
Other neighbors agreed and said the street, largely unpaved and lacking proper drainage, has been a long-standing source of flooding and frustration.
"I have to wear boots to get to my mailbox. It's pretty bad," said Lower. "The kids don't play in the front yard."
Neighbor Sean Coleman, who lives near the end of the street, said he is lucky to not see much flooding where he is but has noticed a cycle of problems in his decade living there. This flood seemed to be much worse than the previous ones.
“We're on a quiet side of the town, so when you see lights, you typically want to see what's going on," said Coleman. “After (living here for) 10 years, it was a sizable amount of water. Cars were, not underwater, but definitely up toward about the chassis in some places."
April Walker, who lives next door to Lower, said she and her family were unaware of the flooding until it had already reached the back of their garage and filled her front lawn.
"Within 15 minutes, I would say our whole front lawn was filled with water and it was starting to go in the garage," said Walker.
After the flooding, she spent much of the next day clearing out water and mud from her garage. Fortunately, no serious damage was done, but it added stress to her growing frustration. Walker had just finished building a French drain over the weekend to prepare for summer storms, using it sooner than expected.
“We've been prepping for a big rainstorm or something, but this was way more than even a rainstorm,” said Walker.
Lower has made similar efforts, both having spent hundreds of dollars on gravel and rock to redirect water, trying to protect their homes on their own. The problem is bigger than what they can afford to fix and hesitates to invest in much-needed landscaping due to worries the next flood will wash it all away.
For years, these residents have reported flooding issues along the unpaved stretch of Cook Avenue. They said the root of the issue is a noticeable dip, or "belly," in the road that allows water to pool and flow directly into their yards.
The street also lacks sidewalks and proper gutters, features that exist just a few blocks away.
“We call it Lake Cook. We've called the city multiple times. A few years ago, I talked to an engineer. They came out and it actually made it worse," said Walker. “It's kind of frustrating."
"There's no drainage. There's no sidewalks. There's no water control at any way shape or form, so I think something needs to happen," added Coleman.
Despite numerous complaints over the years, neighbors say the fixes have been temporary. According to residents, the city once estimated that fully paving the street and installing sidewalks would come at a cost upwards of $25,000 per home, a price few can afford.
While city crews plan to return Tuesday to assess the hydrant, residents said short-term fixes are no longer enough and want to see permanent improvements.
"It is just quite frustrating being a homeowner that has to deal with it on a constant basis," said Lower. "We definitely didn't need this.”
