Dothan company donates equipment flood protection to Dothan Fire Department

Dothan has dodged the last several named tropical storms to hit the U.S., but Dothan Fire Marshal Danny Appling says a newly donated piece of equipment will help the city be prepared for the next Fay, Gustav, Hanna and Ike. All blew right by Dothan, but Fay dumped a fair amount of rain on the city.

Officials at Advance Coastal Technologies, of Dothan, donated a FloodSafe device Thursday to the city, which will give it some protection in the case of flooding.

Dothan Fire Marshal Danny Appling said the Dothan Fire Department helped the company test its FloodSafe device last year. In return, the company donated one to the city. He said the 100 foot tube, made of canvas material, was twice as thick as an 18-wheeler’s tarp.

“A lot of areas are prone to flooding each year during hurricane season, and any of those rains come in and dump 4, 5, or 6 inches,” Appling said. “It’s a diversion device, kind of like a big sandbag.”

Rescue workers use a leaf blower to fill the tube with air, and then water. Appling said the two tubes together hold about 15,000 gallons of water, which would take four people about 15 minutes to fill up. The 100 foot long tube can be rolled up and taken to a flooded area in the bed of a pickup truck.

Appling said it will help with several of the city’s housing subdivisions in low lying areas during storms. He also said it could help city officials open up traffic earlier on flooded streets during inclement weather and storms.

It can also be used if a water main breaks to divert water to keep it from running into a store or building.

Rande Kessler, CEO of the company, said they’re working on marketing it to different municipalities across the country, but they also sell them to businesses. They cost about $5,000 to $6,000. Kessler said the company recently sold four of them to a restaurant owner in Yardley, Pa., which borders a river.

“We’ve created this for flood protection,” Kessler said. “We’ve sold a few of them to different areas of the country.”