Jackson Township campground still cleaning after last week’s flood
JACKSON TWP — Every year Louise Ewing spends her summer at the Indian Brave Campground in Jackson Township before heading south for the winter.
This year, Ewing was able to enjoy her summer campsite for one day.
“We came in on Monday (April 1), and had a beautiful site along the little creek,” Ewing said. “It was such a nice site with a patio. It was great, and I was so happy with it.”
Less than 24 hours later, Ewing and her husband received a knock on their trailer’s door urging them to pack up and move.
“When we woke up Tuesday morning, the water was nearly up to the trailer, which is 4 feet,” Ewing said. “I panicked.”
Within the hour Ewing was instructed by Laura Ebbert Manuel, owner of the campground, to move the recreational vehicle to higher ground.
“She hooked the RV up and put us on top of the hill, where the water won’t reach us,” Ewing said. “She reacted so quickly, I was really impressed how she was able to get everything moving so quickly.”
Now, more than a week after heavy rain caused water to rise in Harmony and other portions of Butler County, those at the Indian Brave Campground, located between Connoquenessing Creek and the Scholars Run tributary, are still cleaning up.
Ebbert Manuel said she was grateful that no one was injured and only one recreational vehicle was lost during last week’s flood, but the flooding has led her to work “around-the-clock” in preparation of the park’s summer season, beginning Monday.
“I’m still cleaning mud,” Ebbert Manuel said. “We’ve never had mud like this before.”
The 25-acre campground has 186 sites. Many still need to be repaired before travelers can set up camp, according to Ebbert Manuel.
“All the RVs have a hookup to a power line and water lines, and they are all were submerged underwater,” Ebbert Manuel said. “They all need to be cleaned and inspected and repaired.”
Further, the flooding caused damage to some items, and other campground property drifted away in the waters.
“I have a picnic table that is embedded in the Reservoir Park,” Ebbert Manuel said.
During the flooding, many of the year-round campground customers pitched in to help move RVs out of the flooding zone. From moving vehicles to warning other residents, customers worked alongside the park’s maintenance crew to ensure the safety of the residents and limit the damage from the storm.
“They moved so many trailers,” Ebbert Manuel said. “Luckily, they are used to moving trailers, but I could not have done it if it were not for my customers banding together and working as smooth as they did.”
While only one RV was severely damaged, according to Ebbert Manual, several of the year-round customers had to temporarily move off site while the park undergoes maintenance.
“It’s not fair to my customers,” she said. “They have paid their seasonal fees to be here.”
This is not the first time Ebbert Manuel, who purchased the campground in 2009, has seen the campground flood.
“We had a similar flood in 2019,” She said. “At least every year I have at least some sort of minor flooding.”
However, Ebbert Manuel said the frequency of major flooding is alarming.
“I have a major flood every five years,” she said. “It used to be 50 years.”
Ebbert Manuel said she feels like the residents in the southern region of Butler county, namely Harmony and Zelienople, are the ones who are facing the brunt of the excessive flooding in the area.
“I don’t think anyone recognizes that it is happening,” she said. “I don’t think people realize these are our businesses, these are our neighbors, and we’re all struggling with flooding.”
To add insult to injury, heavy rains returned to Butler County on Thursday, April 11, along with a flood warning.
"I can't control Mother Nature," Ebbert said. "It would be terrible if it happened again. We just finished cleaning up from the last time it happened."
