TARRANT COUNTY — Homeowners and boat owners around Eagle Mountain Lake were feeling pretty powerless Monday after a severe summer storm moved through Tarrant County Sunday night.
Thousands had no electricity on another day of triple-digit heat.
Meanwhile, owners of some the biggest boats on the lake are trying to assess the damage after one of the floating docks at Lake Country Marina broke free.
Nearly 50 boats suffered damage.
"I-Dock" slammed into another before drifting more than 500 feet into shallow waters near shore. The storm also ripped apart the sheet metal cover that came crashing down onto luxury cabin cruisers moored below.
Boat owner Randall Johnson told News 8 he had no idea when he jumped into his brand new cabin cruiser to escape the storm that he would end up enduring the wildest ride of his life. He said winds of up to 80 mph and heavy rain pummeled the area for about an hour. When it was all over, Johnson emerged from his boat to find it was still attached to I-Dock, but the now mangled dock floated far from its original spot after breaking apart in the storm.
Johnson, like so many other boat owners at Lake Country Marina, is now waiting. His boat is sitting in shallow waters near shore still attached to the I-Dock, but unreachable.
Tow commander Dennis Creech said the marina is hoping to begin hauling the damaged dock out of the water later today and continue Tuesday. However, he said repairing or rebuilding it could take another month and a half.
Creech said even boats unscathed by the storm face another danger in its aftermath. Below the surface, cement pilings that used to help anchor the floating docks are now loose, lurking below the surface. Not helping matters, is the fact water levels are down more than four feet.
Creech said wooden-bottomed boats could be destroyed in an instant and fiber-glass-bottomed boats wouldn't fare much better.
Johnson said he would settle for getting his boat free and clear of I-Dock. After all, he said, he just bought the boat and put it into the water Friday.
E-mail cvega@wfaa.com
