Nearly eight months after what local officials called a “once-in-a-lifetime” storm last August, several Newtown residents are still struggling from the damage left in the storm’s wake.

Two of these residents are Tom and Maria Horvath, who bought their Newtown house in 2002. Being told their property was a “knockdown house” and that they’d have to repair it didn’t deter them from buying it. Over the course of two decades, they worked on improvements while raising their family and making memories in their dream home.

However, everything changed after the devastating storm on Sunday, August 18, which overall brought an average of 12 inches of rain to Newtown. Surging water and rainfall washed out dozens of local roads, leaving them needing repairs, in addition to multiple water rescues from first responders after people drove into waters deeper than expected.

For the Horvaths, their South Main Street property was flooded with five feet of standing water. This resulted in the family losing several vehicles, many personal belongings, and the ability to live in their own home.

Maria, who owns and operates her own wellness studio on the second floor of her home, couldn’t work for several months since the second floor was also being used to dry their valuables. Tom nearly lost his life after going down into the basement to save important documents such as birth certificates and passports when a one-foot wave of water broke through the door and rushed inside.

“I didn’t know how bad it was until he started sharing the story [to other people],” Maria said. “I’m a worrier, so he just didn’t want me to worry I guess, but it’s just a lot.”

Support And Later Struggles

A member of the family set up a GoFundMe on behalf of Tom and Maria to support them after the flood, raising a total of $54,939. This was not the only support they received from the community.

Connecticut Basement Systems owner Larry Janesky came all by himself to look at the Horvath’s basement, which collapsed while Tom was inside during the storm. Janesky not only sent employees to help with repairs for two months, but he also donated towards one half of the house, including the kitchen, living room, one bedroom, one bathroom, and part of the living room.

The Horvath’s friends Linda and Eddie Schaffer from Monroe put them in touch with the emergency response organization HEART 9/11, which donated repairs towards the other half of the house. Tom and Maria lived with friends or whoever else offered their home for periods of time. Thomaston-based heating and cooling company Perfect Timing donated an HVAC system to them, making an HVAC system that would have cost around $60,000 instead cost $23,000.

“I couldn’t stop crying every time I saw people coming,” Maria said. “We’re still so grateful.”

However, even after all of that support, the Horvaths are still dealing with the aftermath of the August storm. In late March, giant trash bags and excavators sit in their backyard. Behind those is a dumpster filled with debris that washed into their yard from the storm in August. Four-to-five inches of standing water sits towards the east of their property and is “always there” according to Maria.

Every time there’s at least an inch of rain, the area around their house floods. This has never been a fear for the Horvaths in the over two decades they’ve lived in Newtown.

Now, however, Maria said that she lives in fear every time it rains.

“It’s affecting our property value. It’s affecting everything,” Maria said. “It’s hard to not wonder when it might happen again.”

Railroad Bridge, Wellfield Damage

The Pootatuck River runs to the west and south of the Horvath’s South Main Street home. The river overflowed on the day of the storm and into their property, bringing in debris and garbage alongside several feet of water.

The root of the issue was the destruction of the nearby railroad bridge opposing South Main Street/Route 25. When that collapsed, the debris that fell into the river blocked up the culverts. The debris caused the water level to rise ten feet higher than normal in addition to the rainfall, according to Public Works Director Fred Hurley. Land Use Director Rob Sibley said that the collapse of two nearby dams also contributed to the high water levels.

It wasn’t just the Horvath’s home; the entire surrounding area on South Main Street flooded. Local first responders performed multiple water rescues from the same water that wrecked Tom and Maria’s home.

Just downstream of the railroad bridge is Aquarion Water Company’s Newtown wellfield, which is the primary source of water supply for Newtown and Bethel residents. The wellfield is near South Main Street and sustained severe enough damage from the flooding to the point it was taken offline.

The collapse of the railroad bridge continues to block the normal flow of the Pootatuck River, leaving the wellfield non-functional.

Aquarion said that the Newtown wellfield will be out of service until the Housatonic Railroad Company removes all remaining debris and restores the streamflow for the river. In the meantime, Aquarion has been using its interconnection with the Eastern Fairfield County system for water.

On March 26, Aquarion announced a mandatory ban on non-essential outdoor water uses for Newtown and Bethel residents. Mandatory restrictions, such as lawn watering by irrigation system or hose-end sprinkler and filling of swimming pools, are in place to conserve water and will remain in effect through 2025 or the flow of the Pootatuck River is no longer impeded.

Hurley characterized the ban as a precautionary measure, as Aquarion has concerns about water levels going into the summer.

Other Residents Speak Out

Being so close to the Pootatuck River, the Horvaths are some of the hardest hit from the railroad bridge not being repaired. However, they are not the only ones. William “Bill” Roy Jr lives in Monroe, but is involved with his family-owned and operated septic company, Bill Jr & Son Septic.

The company’s shop is located on South Main Street, with his parent’s house right beside it. The entire area surrounding the house completely flooded in the August storm. The water nearly went up to the ceiling in the kitchen. Roy Jr navigated the area in a kayak, trying to retrieve valuables from inside the house.

Down by the shop, company trucks and cars were totally submerged in just over nine feet of water.

“It stayed for I think 11 days total,” Roy Jr said. “We lost approximately $750,000 in equipment.”

Roy Jr said that his parents were luckily not in Connecticut during the storm, and were instead at their North Carolina property. With the devastation to the property, which Roy Jr said his father worked extremely hard for all his life, being gone within 12 hours, it was one of two times he had seen his dad cry.

Roy Jr said the Town came in and cut a trail from their property to the railroad bridge and nearby culvert. The Town originally went through Hemlock Road and dug on the other side of the bridge, hoping it’d relieve the water on the Roy’s side. When that didn’t happen, they cut a trail near the Roy’s property to bring equipment into the area and relieve the water pressure.

However, even by early April, there is a large pond of water situated beside the Roy home. The first floor of the family house has its walls and floors completely ripped off. Mold is growing on the walls from several feet of standing water.

“And it’s not like we can sell [the house]. Our property value probably just decreased because this happened. It’s ugly all the way around,” Roy Jr said.

Roy Jr also said that, in the 33 years his parents have owned the property, they have never had any flooding issues like this, even with hurricanes or other large storms in the past.

At the time of the storm, Roy Jr said FEMA eventually walked away due to relocating resources to North Carolina after Hurricane Helene in September of 2024. He got a message recently saying that FEMA wants to call back with a reference number.

“It’s devastation, and also it’s the fear of, we put all this money back in and then it happens again, now what do we do?” Roy Jr said.

The area by the railroad bridge and culvert, he said, looks the same as it did in August. Roy Jr said the lack of progress in repairing the railroad bridge area is “very disheartening.”

“If they said to me to go in and dig it out, I’d do it; I have the equipment. But I’m not allowed to do it because it’s not my property,” Roy Jr said.

Road To Recovery

Tom and Maria Horvath have also been supported by their friend Jay Birden, who has continuously supported and encouraged them to continue reaching out to local officials and get the railroad fixed. While the Horvaths have felt generally stonewalled for the past eight months regarding their concerns, they have had success in connecting with State Representative Mitch Bolinsky.

Bolinsky said that he has been in contact with Governor Ned Lamont’s Chief of Staff, Matthew Brokman, on a regular basis and that they are poised to move forward and address the South Main Street water issues with “great urgency.”

With the support of the Governor’s office and his Chief of Staff, the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) will be helping with site inspection, engineering support, advising on downstream environmental impacts, and more.

Bolinsky said that he spoke with DEEP Deputy Commissioner Mason Trumble Tuesday, April 8, and discussed the need for state engineering support to validate or modify a Newtown Public Works Phase 1 proposal, a multi-phase proposal from Housatonic Railroad’s Construction Contractor, as well as DEEP recommendations, with the objective of initiating and completing Phase 1 riverbed excavation, stabilization, and water level restoration in a matter of weeks, not months.

He noted that Phase 1 of this plan will not include the bridge restoration, and that subsequent phases will be dependent on the Housatonic Railroad’s timelines, resources, and availability of state and federal rail funds.

“There are people respectfully dealing with this, and I’m looking to satisfy them and put their lives back on track so they don’t lose sleep every time there’s rain in the forecast,” Bolinsky said.

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Reporter Jenna Visca can be reached at jenna@thebee.com.