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Floodwaters in Santa Rosa Being Pumped Out, Residents Living in Lake Bed

Floodwaters in Santa Rosa Being Pumped Out, Residents Living in Lake Bed
5 years 5 months 6 hours ago Friday, July 05 2019 Jul 5, 2019 July 05, 2019 9:35 PM July 05, 2019 in News - Local

SANTA ROSA – The irrigation district says they're looking at over a month before flooded areas in Santa Rosa are gone.

A Texas Commission on Environmental Quality study from the '80s shows the area that's currently flooded is actually a lake bed.

According to the official TCEQ rule book Tio Cano Lake is described as a large capacity reservoir.

Some areas are still drowning under more than six feet of water.

La Feria irrigation district general manager, Al Martinez, says extra pumps are filling the canal to its maximum level.

He tells us they’re moving 187 acre-feet of water per-a-day; that's enough to cover about 185 football fields with a foot of liquid.

At that rate, it's going to take another 40 to 50 days of pumping to get water levels back to normal.

The elevation map from the TCEQ shows how sunken in the land is.

The document doesn't say the irrigation district is responsible for drainage, but they're still working with the county to pump the land.

"The farmers right now are having to put out the bill on these electric pumps to pump it because that's been our history. We do it. Last year it cost us $9,000. This year I estimate it will cost us $15,000,” says Martinez.

For more information watch the video above.

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