$280K in estimated flood damage at Oakland Mills

The Henry County Conservation Department is celebrating completing the construction of two new cabins while surveying flood damage and setting priority projects for next year.

There is $280,000 in estimated damages to Oakland Mills County Park, according to the 2019 damage report, Pullis said.

Waterworks Campground was hit unusually hard, bearing $180,000 of the damage, said Conservation director John Pullis, during a Board of Supervisors meeting on Tuesday, June 11.

'We had more silt and sediment left in that park than ever before,” Pullis said, estimating 6,000 cubic yards of silt and sediment had been deposited at the campground.

Pullis said that it cost $30 per cubic yard to clean up the silt.

The Conservation Board set priorities for Oakland Mills County Park during a meeting on Monday, June 10. Their top three priorities are a new roof for the county park offices, replacing the HVAC in the old cabins and installing more insulation in the roofs of the old cabins.

Pullis said the county park offices roof is only 15 years old, but it leaks in the bathroom and kitchen. Insulation will be added to the old cabins in conjunction with replacing the HVAC because the cabins currently don't have very good insulation, Pullis said.

Other priorities include the Nature Center's parking lot, repairs to the footbridge, Waterworks Campground, a zip line course, and woody debris removal from the dam.

Pullis said that if the county does get a flood declaration from Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), it should help cover the cost of debris removal from the dam.

'FEMA needs to see that massive wood pile that's there,” Pullis said.

An open house for the newly constructed cabins at Oakland Mills will be held Sunday, June 16, from noon to 3 p.m.

The cabins were built in memory of George and Imogene Nuding, who were residents of Henry County and named the Henry County Conservation Department as a beneficiary of their estate. The proceeds were used to construct the cabins, which are named 'George” and 'Imogene.”

The Conservation board and staff will be on hand to answer any questions about the construction process and rental procedure of the new facilities.

The cabins will be available to rent online at mycountyparks.com on Monday, June 17, at noon.

For more information, contact the Conservation Department at 319-986-5067.