HARTFORD, Conn — For some Hartford businesses in the North End, flooding happens so often they still have the sandbags up from the last storm we had a month or two ago. On Tuesday they are putting up different barriers from letting the water in, keeping the sandbags up, and putting even more barriers all the way around their buildings.
Star Hardware Property Manager Jim Lusa said they have spent the day trying to minimize the water that might pour into their store Tuesday night, he tells us it’s usually not a matter of if, but how much.
“The last three or four years we’ve been getting it three to four times a year,” Lusa said. “A year ago we had to open the front doors to let the water out.”
He told FOX61 that Star Hardware was the first of its kind in Hartford, making it a community staple, but the Fourth of July flood last year was the last straw.
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“Moved the hardware store and closed it down, shrunk the size of it because it’s too much damage and that material couldn’t come off the floor,” Lusa said.
Lusa said he made a whole new plan to keep tonight’s water out and the damage to a minimum.
“We tried to clear everything that can get ruined off the floor, basically we are moving our sales counter off the floor until they can come up with a solution, we built a dike in the back that’s worked the last two storms but we can’t trust it it’s too much property inside getting messed up,” Lusa said.
Star Hardware employees aren’t the only ones bracing for the impacts, while driving around Tuesday morning FOX61 saw other residents and business owners putting out sandbags and getting out mop buckets as they waited to see how bad the rain is for them this time.
If you end up having flooding in your home or business in Hartford you can potentially get reimbursed for any money you spent fixing the damages. Make sure you have proper documentation, take pictures and videos then you can submit for reimbursement here.
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