River flooding in D’Iberville

While rain continues to pound the pavement in South Mississippi, many residents find themselves trapped in their neighborhoods along the river.
Tires spinning, fighting against several inches of flood water off Highway 67. Wells Ferry Landing Resident Danny Carter said, “The water is up about three or four more feet than yesterday. It’s about halfway up my car port and it’s about a foot deep in the car port.”
Wells Ferry Landing residents know all too well the cost of living on the water. Glen Derouen maneuvers his ATV through the rising waters to get his wife to her car, parked on the highway shoulder so she could make it to work Thursday morning. But he will likely be picking her up by another means when her shift ends. “Probably by noon we’ll have to get in and out by waders or canoe. This won’t be able to get out.”
In the Wells Ferry Landing community, it is nearly impossible to tell where Tchoutacabouffa River ends and the road begins, but many residents say this is nothing new to their neighborhood. “I’ve been through it before so I wasn’t scared. It’s about two to three feet deep,” said Carter.
Derouen said, “This will be our fifth, our fifth flood in 11 years. I grew up on the Biloxi River and we flooded about three times a year.”
Dozens of residents prepared for the wrath of Tropical Storm Cindy by parking their cars along Highway 67 to avoid getting trapped or flood damage to their vehicles. “Remove things from under your house, put them in a higher place or take them up by the road,” said Derouen.
Emergency management officials project the river cresting at 15 feet with a flood stage of eight feet. For now, residents’ spirits are staying afloat. “They’ll be canoeing all day around the neighborhood all day today,” said Derouen.
Carter said, “Eat, drink, have a tropical storm party.”