By Staff
One of the first things people learn about Brewton is that the city floods.
In fact, history tells us that Murder Creek and Burnt Corn Creek have risen above their banks an average of once every 1.5 years.
History also tells us that when this happens, the event has a significant negative impact on the city.
Large employers T.R. Miller Mill Company, Brewton Ironworks and Citation have all been impacted by high waters in the past, making economic troubles among the things that have to be cleaned up in the messy aftermath of a Brewton flood.
There's also the ever present danger that at some point, a Brewton flood will occur at the same time a hurricane whips in from the Gulf, making the evacuation route Floridians must travel through the city next to impassable.
All of these looming possibilities make the city's partnership with the Army Corps of Engineers in seeking a solution to the problem a welcome one.
The city and Corps entered into a partnership to tackle this problem several years ago, and efforts to find a solution are moving along ahead of schedule.
One possible fix that's been bandied about is construction of a levee that would extend from O'Bannon Park, around Murder Creek and past T.R. Miller Mill Company.
The levee would theoretically keep water from reaching the downtown area, holding the flood at bay within a perimeter until water could be safely pumped out. Advocating a levee or any specific course of action here would be premature, but encouraging the mayor and city council to keep working with the Corps on a solution is not.
The city's financial share of the study that's underway is around $500,000, and that's money well spent when one considers the size of the problem that's being addressed. The city should pursue all reasonable avenues along these lines.
We depend upon the major employers who are in a potential flood's path, and Brewton's downtown has been experiencing an encouraging renaissance of late.
It would be a shame to see these elements of our city again underwater.