Still stuck in August flood's wake

The storms that flooded John and Patricia Fomusa's house last summer pummeled and retreated in a matter of hours.

But the devastation left behind has not receded nearly as quickly as the floodwater.

Today, more than four months after the Aug. 23 flood, John Fomusa still waits to return to the house he bought 26 years before Kane County's biggest storms in decades forced him out.

When he does get back home, the house will be 9 feet higher than it was before the storms and, with any luck, out of the reach of future disasters.

"Just getting back to normal will be nice," says Fomusa, 56, whose house did not have a history of flooding before August.

Last summer's storms caused $4.1 million in response and cleanup expenses for Kane County, which was declared a disaster area, and also cost hundreds of homeowners time and money, and compromised their quality of life.

For the Fomusas, a small rental house has served as a temporary replacement home for the family of four, two dogs and two cats, while Iowa-based contractors lifted their house at 35W450 Rockwell Ave. in unincorporated St. Charles up 9 feet and set it back down on a new foundation and new walls.

If the process sounds peculiar, that's because it is -- around here anyway.

It was a learning experience for Fomusa, too, until he hired Jeremy Patterson House Moving, an Iowa-based company that has done similar jobs in Hurricane Katrina-ravaged New Orleans and as far away as New Zealand.

The company essentially lifted the 94-ton house with huge, heavy-duty jacks and set it back down on a new base, said the business owner's father, John Patterson. Coincidentally, some of the equipment was manufactured in Elburn.

It took a couple weeks of preparation and then a few days to actually get the house up in the air. The most difficult part was relocating a hefty fireplace that's "solid brick all the way through," Patterson said.

Still, "we were able to go pretty fast," he said as the crew wrapped up its job last month.

Fomusa said having his house raised was not the ideal outcome from the flood -- but it was either "up or out" after the storm.

Neighbors and passers-by were quick to notice.

"It's not something you see every day," Fomusa said. "It sort of blows you away when you look at it."

Elevating a house typically costs between $15,000 and $25,000, depending on the size, Patterson estimated. Fomusa said flood insurance helped cover some of his cost.

In addition to being taller, the house is about 1,800 square feet larger than it was before because of newly created areas under the garage and main floor. But the Fomusas will be able to use only the upstairs as living quarters because of the potential for flooding at ground level.

Even though the lifting is complete, Fomusa still has plenty of work ahead, such as putting in new floors, building stairway entrances to the old doors, and putting in new baseboards and drywall.

He can't wait to be done.

"Everything has just been a struggle," Fomusa said. "Literally every day since (the flood) I have done something with regards to this, in one way or another. Sometimes a lot of hours, sometimes not that many. But every day."

"It's not something you're prepared for."

Up and down the Fox River, other homeowners can relate.

Penny Gebhardt was able to defend her house on Riverside Drive from the rising Fox River last summer, but she broke a bone in her knee in the sandbagging process.

The injury healed in about seven weeks, Gebhardt said. Now her attention is focused on restoring landscaping and a perennial flower garden.

"So much of it was killed because of the water," she said.

Evelyn and Harry Klimek were even less fortunate.

The couple has been living in the second story of their two-story house on Grove Avenue in Valley View since the storms.

Evelyn Klimek said they have had to "gut the whole living area of the house" and replace drywall, insulation and flooring -- all with moisture-resistant materials. A plumber is scheduled to repair the bathroom.

But the family has no plans to move.

"This is our retirement home," she said. "We're on the river. We've got a pontoon boat so we can go fishing and stuff."

The Klimeks also have a generator now -- one they hope will keep the sump pump going next time.