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3 Man made ponds breeching banks and flooding my property

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No drainage easement on any properties involved or properties adjacent to properties involved confirmed at county courthouse.
Railroad company track involved. Railroad system makes a T. Top part of the T will be tracks 1. The "I" part of the tracks will be tracks 2.
2 Ponds are on the left side of tracks 2. Pond 1 will be pond closest to tracks 1. Pond 2 is the pond that overflows into pond 1. 1 Pond (Pond 3) is on the other side of tracks 2.
Tracks 1 is up 15 feet from ground level. Tracks 2 has been changed over the years to merge into track 1 above pond 3. Tracks 2 used to travel under tracks 1 through an underpass. Tracks have been removed. Underpass still there. To the left of the underpass (pipe 1) and to the right of the underpass (pipe 2) are pipes draining from one side of the tracks to the other.

Pond 2 is a standing pond that someone has made a ditch for it to flood into pond 1 instead of towards their home. Pond 1 overflows it's bank up against tracks 1 flowing into pipe 1. Pond 1 also overflows its banks at another location and fills the abandoned underpass. Pond 3 overflows its banks near tracks 1 and into pipe 2. Overflow from pipe 1 and pipe 2 converge with overflow from underpass. The water then flows up abandoned railroad tracks ditch and drains into my property creating a 3 acre pond up to 3 feet deep in certain locations when heavy rain fills the other ponds.

Again no drainage easements attached to any deeds. None of the ponds are natural. All man made. They area actually has about 7 ponds that may all be draining into each other towards my way and flooding my property. I can only prove 3 with video and pictures I have taken. All ponds are privately owned ponds.
 


quincy

Senior Member
No drainage easement on any properties involved or properties adjacent to properties involved confirmed at county courthouse.
Railroad company track involved. Railroad system makes a T. Top part of the T will be tracks 1. The "I" part of the tracks will be tracks 2.
2 Ponds are on the left side of tracks 2. Pond 1 will be pond closest to tracks 1. Pond 2 is the pond that overflows into pond 1. 1 Pond (Pond 3) is on the other side of tracks 2.
Tracks 1 is up 15 feet from ground level. Tracks 2 has been changed over the years to merge into track 1 above pond 3. Tracks 2 used to travel under tracks 1 through an underpass. Tracks have been removed. Underpass still there. To the left of the underpass (pipe 1) and to the right of the underpass (pipe 2) are pipes draining from one side of the tracks to the other.

Pond 2 is a standing pond that someone has made a ditch for it to flood into pond 1 instead of towards their home. Pond 1 overflows it's bank up against tracks 1 flowing into pipe 1. Pond 1 also overflows its banks at another location and fills the abandoned underpass. Pond 3 overflows its banks near tracks 1 and into pipe 2. Overflow from pipe 1 and pipe 2 converge with overflow from underpass. The water then flows up abandoned railroad tracks ditch and drains into my property creating a 3 acre pond up to 3 feet deep in certain locations when heavy rain fills the other ponds.

Again no drainage easements attached to any deeds. None of the ponds are natural. All man made. They area actually has about 7 ponds that may all be draining into each other towards my way and flooding my property. I can only prove 3 with video and pictures I have taken. All ponds are privately owned ponds.
What is the name of your state?
 
So no hope for going to township and handing over evidence of the ponds not being maintained causing flooding. But we definitely have a legal issue worth getting advice from an attorney about.
 

quincy

Senior Member
So no hope for going to township and handing over evidence of the ponds not being maintained causing flooding. But we definitely have a legal issue worth getting advice from an attorney about.
You are interested in stopping the flow of pond water onto your property, I assume?

Are the ponds created solely from rain water that has had its natural flow diverted? Is there ever a period of time when the ponds are dry? Was there at one time a single pond, perhaps created by the railroad?
 
You are interested in stopping the flow of pond water onto your property, I assume?

Are the ponds created solely from rain water that has had its natural flow diverted? Is there ever a period of time when the ponds are dry? Was there at one time a single pond, perhaps created by the railroad?
I would rather my property not to be holding the pond water when it over flows.

I don't know if some of the smaller ponds ever dry up. Size of even smaller ponds by satellite image make it hard to believe they dry up. Ponds by railroad do not ever dry up. There are no streams that fill the ponds. Filled solely by rain water. Private properties by the ponds have homes on them so I'm sure during land development the flow of rain water was directed to flow into ponds. Railroad company also has altered the land to build up land under track 2 to meet track 1. I do not know if local township has storm drainage system flowing into ponds. The ponds have no flow into a stream draining any of them. I haven't found any record showing one pond being split into 4 by railroad. We have been led to believe that the ponds were created by mining and were not filled in when finished. However I haven't researched that enough to know for sure if that is accurate.
 

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