ELKHART COUNTY — Preparations have begun for the big thaw headed our way. Elkhart County officials are already warning that melting snow combined with rainfall could lead to flooding.

Some homeowners aren't taking any chances.

People in the Baugo Creek area are well-acquainted with flooding. They say every time there's a big rain, the creek rises and causes flooding. So they're getting the sandbags and pumps ready just in case.

“It's beautiful here,” homeowner Gary Iwaniuk told WSBT News. “There's nothing but woods back here. There’s all kinds of animals — owls, deer.”

But the beautiful creek can turn ugly in a hurry for homeowners in the Creekwood subdivision.

“It'll be right where we're standing, in the water, and once it starts coming it’ll be right to the bottom of my deck, guaranteed, within 45 minutes,” Iwaniuk said.

Elkhart County Emergency Management Director Jennifer Tobey says homeowners should get ready now for any potential flooding.

“They should prepare for the worst,” she said. “If they've had flooding before, there's evidence we could have flooding again. So they need to put some sandbags up or do whatever they need to do to keep the water out of their homes.”

The homeowners here have already seen flooding in the past few months, and if that wasn't enough, their taxes increased.

They want the state to dredge the creek again. But until that happens, they just have to deal with the flooding.

“I've got my pumps ready, my hoses ready, because I told the wife — we just got back from vacation — it's coming,” Iwaniuk said.

Homeowners can pick up sandbags Saturday afternoon at the Six Span Bridge in Elkhart. There's also sand and bags there now if homeowners want to fill them themselves.