ORLANDO, Fla. – It’s still a long road to recovery for so many whose homes were more or less gutted by floodwaters in Orlando’s Orlo Vista area.

What You Need To Know

  • Floodwaters are gone but cleanup continues in Orlo Vista

  • Mayor Demings: public works, stormwater utilities continue to monitor retention ponds

  • Department of Public Works pumped approx. 14 million gallons of water from pump station ahead of Ian, according to a county spokesperson

Valintina Douglas, who lived with her fiancé on Ronnie Circle for about three years, is now staying at his sister’s house. She calls her house unlivable, between the flood damage and the water-logged smell.

“We need all the help we can get,” she said. “All my neighbors need all the help they can get.”

On Monday, a FEMA inspector determined the flood waters in her house reached four feet, according to Douglas. 

“It’s like a war zone,” she said. “Everybody is affected by this.”

Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings held a press conference Monday, updating residents on storm recovery efforts. He said public works and stormwater utilities crews continue to monitor Orlo Vista’s retention ponds.

Part of the problem, Demings said, is only so much water can be pumped from those retention ponds and diverted into the Shingle Creek area.

“There’s likely no stormwater system that could have handled the magnitude of the rainfall that we had within our community,” he said.

Demings said his office is working on long-term solutions with federal and state partners. "We are reviewing those long-term plans and if we can expedite what we believe is the solution, we will expedite it," he said.

Back in January, Congresswoman Val Demings, his wife, secured $7.5 million in federal funding as part of Hurricane Irma recovery efforts. The funding will help cover a $10 million drainage improvement project in the Orlo Vista neighborhood.

Spectrum News 13 reached out to the congresswoman’s office and county officials for details on the timeline of that project and whether Hurricane Ian will impact it.

The Department of Public Works pumped approximately 14 million gallons of water from the Orlo Vista pump station ahead of the storm, and around 250 million gallons during and after Hurricane Ian to bring the water back to its normal elevation, according to a county spokesperson.