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North Toledo woman, neighbor facing water damages after backyard pump bursts

A pump in Janette Wells' Maywood Avenue backyard burst, leaving her and her neighbor with flooded basements, yards and costly damages.

TOLEDO, Ohio — Rain is a soothing sound that can often lull a person to sleep at night. But for Janette Wells, who lives on Maywood Avenue in north Toledo, a pump burst in her backyard on Wednesday and it was not a soothing experience, to say the least.

"If I wanted a pond, it would be beautiful. But I don't want a pond," Wells said. "We did the foundation so the basement won't flood and it was working for two years until this happened."

She said the pump is from Toledo-based waterproofing company EverDry.

The water flowed into her neighbor's yard, and soon enough, the two residents shared a body of water that stretched from home to home, even in the basement.

"I'm just thinking about the neighbors though and it's just horrible," Wells said.

When WTOL 11 visited Wells' home on Friday, the water was still streaming out of the burst pump.

On Friday afternoon, Wells said EverDry came to the scene, turned off the water and pumped out all of the water from her and neighbor's homes.

The problem is, no one knows where the water came from. Even after the water was shut off, Wells said the source of the water was still unclear. The water eventually stopped flowing after each plug and pump was turned off in her basement.

"I said 'well, why don't we turn off my house water?'" Wells said. "And he said 'it's not coming from your house.' 'Well, where is it coming from? Ya'll put it in."

The problem goes further than the yards, though. The water damage is going to cost Wells a hefty sum to fix.

"We have to take everything out and redo it again," Wells said. "Everything that's down here on the floor we have to get up and get out."

Her basement didn't flood once. It flooded twice. There was mold in the drywall and the sump pump was at a standstill.

Credit: WTOL 11

"I don't know what to do. I'm trying to save my house and (my neighbor's) house," Wells said.

She hopes a nightmare water bill and her neighbor's property damage costs don't land in her lap.

The City of Toledo said people who have a flooded basement to call Engage Toledo at 419-936-2020.

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