PONDERAY - A sandbag brigade was assembled by the Northside Fire District on Friday to turn back snowmelt runoff at a home on Aultstarr Lane.

“Anywhere between 5 and 7 o'clock, the water just started raising. It was almost like a tide coming in and there, basically, was nothing that we could do about it,” said Kent Keller, the home's owner.

Runoff filled about two thirds of the crawl space and lapped at the level of the home's bottom floor, said Keller.

“There's no interior damage, but it's hard to say what's going on underneath,” said Keller, who believes his home was built too low in an area notorious for drainage issues.

Keller began experiencing flooding problems last fall and has since purchased four sump pumps to keep water from invading his home. He's also added two large-capacity pumps, which can shift about 26,000 gallons an hour.

“One's running full blast,” he said on Monday night.

An Independent Highway District crew installed a new culvert near the home, which is diverting some of the water. The new culvert allowed Keller to shut off one of the high-volume pumps.

Keller suspects the water is coming from a field behind his place and possibly another field off McNearney Road, runoff from which was being undermined by a blocked culvert.

Keller said he was not prepared to say what action he is considering to address the persistent flooding problems at his home.