ELON, N.C. — Jaqueline Scott is a dog mom. Her pride and joy is a tiny black and grey pooch named King James. Like most dogs, King James likes to play and run around. The only problem with that is the front yard in Scott’s house was a muddy mess.
“The biggest problem is the water. When we have rain, my house is surrounded by water,” Scott said.
The front yard has a drainage ditch by the street that helps water flow, but instead of draining, it overflows in Scott’s yard. Unlike her neighbors, Scott does not have a drainage pipe under her driveway. So, instead of flowing down past her house and the others, it backs up and spills into her yard.
“The other day, the dog and I were sitting in the house with the door open, and you could hear the frogs under the porch,” Scott said.
There are times Scott says the water is so bad it’s tough to get from her porch to the driveway without getting wet. Scott says she has offered to pay for a permanent fix.
“I offered myself to put a pipe in the driveway to help, but she (owner) told me no,” Scott said.
After a sizeable rainstorm last year, Scott decided to reach out to News 2 for some help. We contacted the owner and explained the situation. The owner told us she was working on a solution and would get back to us. Scott received a call from the owner a few weeks later to let her know a drainage pipe would be installed shortly.
“I was so afraid and embarrassed. I wouldn’t have company to my house because of (of the) yard,” Scott said.
They installed a new drain pipe, and Scott tells News 2 it has made a big difference. The water that used to be in the yard continues to flow past the house into a drainage area.
“All I can say is thank you, thank you for coming to my rescue,” Scott said.
These days, King James is back in the front yard playing, even after a rainy day.