Three months later, residents of Lesterville try to recover from flash flooding

“I can’t sit here and let my business wash away, we sunk our life into this place essentially,” Twin Rivers Landing owner Dave Dinkins said as he stands outside the camp store in Lesterville, Mo., on Wednesday, Sept. The barn at Twin Rivers Landing was transported dozens of feet away from its foundation during the July 10th flash flooding in Lesterville, Mo., on Wednesday, Sept. The campground was completely submerged by the Black River and destroyed…

Three months later, debris still covers the window panes at Twin Rivers Landing after the July 10th flash flooding in Lesterville, Mo., on Wednesday, Sept. Debris-covered books sit on a church pew in Black River Baptist Church as a result of the July 10th flash flooding in Lesterville, Mo., on Wednesday, Sept. Three months later, the church is still rebuilding and its members…

“I still need to live here,” Kim Garrett, of Lesterville, said as she looks around a gutted bedroom in her house in Lesterville, Mo., on Wednesday, Sept. The July 10th Black River flash flooding destroyed her home and… Pastor Greg Freeman greets church member Dale Hawkins, of Black, as bible study wraps up and Wade Mathes, left, flips through renovation plans for the Black River Baptist Church in Pleasant Union United Baptist Church in Black, Mo., on Wednesday,…

April Freeman, of Black, smiles at her granddaughter, Finley Freeman, 3, as she eats watermelon during a bible study with other members of the Black River Baptist Church at Pleasant Union United Baptist Church in Black, Mo., on Wednesday, Sept.… Dale Hawkins leans into Laura Hawkins, both of Black, as they follow along scripture during a bible study with members of the Black River Baptist Church at Pleasant Union United Baptist Church in Black, Mo., on Wednesday, Sept. Debris covers the church pews and mold begins to form in Black River Baptist Church as a result of the July 10th flash flooding in Lesterville, Mo., on Wednesday, Sept.

Three months later, the church is still rebuilding… Pastor Greg Freeman and his wife April, of Lesterville, cover their nose and mouths against the smell of mold as they pass by the worship center that will be demolished at Black River Baptist Church in Lesterville, Mo., on Wednesday,… A creek runs through the backyard of Ken Atkins, of Lesterville, in Lesterville, Mo., on Wednesday, Sept.

The creek flooded with water from the Black River in flash flooding three months prior, flooding his home and destroying it.… “I made a death promise to my buddy, I don’t go back on that promise,” Ken Atkins said as he looks around his backyard creek where the Black River water levels rose and flooded his home in Lesterville, Mo., on… Ken Atkins, of Lesterville, stands in his home destroyed by the July 10th flood in Lesterville, Mo., on Wednesday, Sept.