On Monday, Chattooga County Magistrate Judge Tracy Maddux showed WZQZ News just how high the water got inside the Judge Jon Payne Chattooga County Courthouse Annex on Sunday morning.  Maddux said that while the damage inside the building is bad, it could have been worse.

All of the carpet in the building that houses the Magistrate Court, the Chattooga County Assessor’s Office and Chattooga County Tax Commissioner’s office will have to be replaced.  The damaged carpet is only part of the problem after water flooded into the building.  The county government has called in professionals to assist with recovery efforts and local officials are still assessing damage to the building and its contents.

Judge Maddux says that magistrate court proceedings for this week have been canceled and that he is working with the Chattooga County Superior Court to see about transferring proceedings to the main courthouse for next week.

Maddux said that he and Chattooga County Commissioner Blake Elsberry were inside the Annex on Sunday morning and waded through water to get the electricity shut off to avoid more damage.  The courtroom inside the building sustained water damage as did all the storage areas and offices.