Tense evacuation of KC mobile home park turns into false alarm

Residents of the Heart Mobile Village in east Kansas City had 15 minutes to get out, tactical officers warned Tuesday afternoon, going rapidly door to door.

The Blue River and affected storm sewers appeared ready to breach, flood monitors said.

“This is all just tension and adrenaline!” one distressed resident said as she tried to get her mother to one of the buses from the Kansas City Area Transportation Authority that had been rushed to the scene.

Then, just as residents were gathering outside the mobile home village, many with pets in their arms, the word came: false alarm. The river had crested without a breach.

“They said we had to get everything and get out within 15 minutes,” said resident Michael Schaeffer, 30. “There were talking about 6 feet of water, or something, I’m not sure.”

Kansas City Police Officer Noah Stigall was part of a tactical team that was rushed into duty to evacuate the residents.

“Here we are, 10 minutes later, they said the water is not going to crest,” he said. “So we’re going to take all the citizens back to their homes. At least we’re ready just in case, I guess. But all is good.”

Said Shaeffer: “I’m glad nothing happened. Better safe than sorry.”

This story was originally published August 22, 2017 at 5:16 PM with the headline "Tense evacuation of KC mobile home park turns into false alarm."