Atlanta flood of ’09: remembering

A retaining wall at a Lawrenceville strip mall is evidence of the flood's power (my picture)

California has earthquakes, and I’ve been through several. Other coastal areas have hurricanes. But landlocked Atlanta is not exempt from natural disasters.

Many Atlantans remember the Flood of 2009. A year ago, the city was hammered by heavy rains that covered up parts of I-285 and the Six Flags theme park. The deluge killed nine people and caused some $250 million damage as well as rendering many people homeless. (Flooding is not covered by standard homeowners insurance.)

Now it’s time to look back. The AJC has a photo slideshow.

Also, the tragic event showed the power of social media. I began my day by live-tweeting updates from local television reports. (Remember, like other mass media, TV fact-checks info before it goes out.) Among those reading were Carol Flammer, Atlanta public-relations business owner, and Andria Krewson, a Charlotte, N.C., journalist with Atlanta ties.

Flammer later had me write a story for her Atlanta Real Estate Forum site about the flood. And Krewson blogged about the coverage. Other flood “tweeters” — Grayson Daughters and Tessa Horehled — explained their efforts with a video. My blog post from last year recaps all this. The video below shows some of the damage at Six Flags.

So the power of nature — and social media — is remembered.