MIDDLEBURG, Fla. — People living along Black Creek in Clay County saw high water after Hurricane Milton.
Cory Chevalier lives along the south fork of Black Creek in Middleburg. He moved into his home in 2019.
"In the five years since we’ve lived on the creek, this is the highest we’ve seen it," Chevalier told First Coast News.
He believes there was an extra six feet of water sitting on top of his dock Friday afternoon.
"There’s what appears to be two pieces of docks washed up on ours," Chevalier said.
Black Creek rose steadily Thursday after Milton moved offshore from Florida. Chevalier is one of many homeowners along the creek who watched water levels rise. Some people moved their cars to higher ground, and others saw their yards covered with water. Creek Street off Black Creek Drive was also underwater for hours.
"It’s just something that’s kind of in the back of our minds during a storm, 'Is this going to be the one?'" Chevalier said.
Chevalier mentioned that he was prepared for the creek to rise after Milton. He moved valuables and important documents on top of his kitchen cabinets and had a plan to evacuate his family just in case. He said he was still surprised to see the water levels that high.
"During [Hurricane] Helene, it only rose about a foot and that was closer to us," Chevalier said.
According to a spokesperson for Clay County, there were no reports of major flooding in residents' homes and no rescues had to be made. The water levels peaked Thursday evening, with the south fork reaching 16.86 feet.
While Chevalier waits for the water level in creek to go back down, he is breathing a sigh of relief and hoping they will not have to worry about flooding again until next hurricane season.
"I’m just thankful it didn’t flood. I’m thankful the creek held what it did and we didn’t have to file an insurance claim," Chevalier said.