Here in Montana, we know the dangers this time of year with snowmelt and flooding. And while you may think you’re prepared, I’m going to tell you the story of one woman whose entire home flooded Monday afternoon. And it may have you thinking twice.
“Have you ever experienced a flood before?” I asked Hollie Trotter. “No. I’ve never experienced anything like this. Not even like a fire. No nothing like that. You would never think it would be you," Hollie tells me.
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Monday started off like any other day for Hollie. She was working from home as a customs broker when the unexpected happened.
“My dad had gotten out of bed because my elderly father who is disabled lives with me. And he looked out the window and we had seen the side of the building had feet of water near it,” Hollie explains.
Hollie and her father rushed outside and realized a massive pile of snow was blocking a creek, causing water to rise fast.
Hollie and her father knew they had to act quickly and immediately began shoveling a pathway for that water to flow through.
“Since I work from home, I wear my pajamas. So, I was in like pajama shorts, and I came out in flip flops and a sweater. So, I was out here for like three hours in calf-deep water shoveling ice and snow,” Hollie says.
But what Hollie and her father didn’t realize is that while they were shoveling snow, their home was being hit hard. By the time they got back to their apartment, about a foot of water was flowing through their front door.
“I was like, ‘Oh no, we need to get the water out.' And I have a diabetic cat. She’s like 13, 14 years old. So, I’m like, save the cat, save what we can,’” says Hollie.
Hollie’s entire complex sits at the bottom of a hill, located off Haggerty Lane in Bozeman. Because Hollie’s apartment is the lowest point in her complex, her unit was the only one flooded.
That complex is managed by a company called Devco, so I reached out to see if flooding has occurred in the past. A Devco representative tells me they’ve only run the Haggerty units for a year, and over that time, flooding hasn't been an issue. But according to a tenant who’s lived in these units for a number of years, a similar flooding event did happen 10 years ago. Devco did confirm this flood was caused by snowmelt and said they were able to put tenants up in a hotel Monday night and get a restoration company into the unit as quickly as possible. But now the tenants are on their own.
“And then renter's insurance was supposed to kick in. And I just found out today, renter's insurance does not cover flood,” Hollie said, concerned.
Which has left Hollie feeling hopeless and confused.
“So, we kind of have no news. We don’t know what we’re doing. We don’t know where we’re going. We don’t know anything.”
Hollie’s boss helped her with a temporary place to live, but restoration is expected to take a minimum of six weeks. And with Hollie feeling left in the dark on her renter's insurance, she has this piece of advice for other renters.
“Ask your insurance if it does cover floods. Because this is just a random thing, like a fire. You’d think it was covered. I would never think I’d be in a flood in Montana, either. But it happened,” says Hollie.
