OSCEOLA COUNTY, Fla. — Lake Toho and East Lake Toho are expected to crest by Friday, a worrying prospect for people at the Jade Isles mobile home community in Saint Cloud, just southeast of East Lake Toho.
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Catherine McGowan said not once in her 11 years at Jade Isles has she felt this forgotten about.
“I feel displaced, I feel like nobody has done anything for Jade Isles,” she said. “They do things for Osceola County but not Jade Isles.”
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Her home is at the back end of what used to be a road but has now become a continuation of Lake Runnimead, which has been flooded by Lake Toho, and brought nature to McGowan’s doorstep and fear for what’s to come.
“Everything is going to be a total loss, which means we’re not going to have anything,” she said. “And we’re seniors, so we don’t have the money to go anywhere, so it’s scary.”
The city of St. Cloud has partnered with South Florida Water Management to increase drainage to slow things down.
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The city has also asked 4,000 to evacuate, but McGowan is sticking around.
The lake is at 60.1 feet, and is expected to crest at 61 feet.
Neighbors have asked that others stop down there to check out the levels, and let them live here in peace.
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