Published: December 19, 2008 11:46 pm      

High waters swamp basements and close down roads

A storm system dumped heavy rain across the region Friday, flooding homes, closing roads and forcing businesses to shut.

Firefighters in Cambria and Somerset counties worked through the day pumping flooded basements.

By 4:30 p.m., AccuWeather reported that 1.92 inches of rain had fallen at the Johnstown airport. “The whole county is under water,” a 911 supervisor in Ebensburg said.

Flooded basements were reported across central and southern Cambria County. “That’s where it seems the bulk of everything is,” he said.

In the Patton area, PennDOT said Route 4008, Beech Street, was closed at the intersection with Sunset Road due to flooding.

By Friday night, about 80 percent of the county’s flooded basements were in Richland and Croyle townships, Dunlo, South Fork and Elton.

It was much of the same in Somerset County.

“We’ve had a lot of calls, mainly flooded basements,” 911 Director Dave Fox said. By 4:30 p.m., 90 flooded basements had been reported, he said.

Rain forced the closure of Route 4013, Keysertown Road, from the intersection of Yoder Road in Lincoln Township to the intersection of Beam Church Road in Jenner Township, PennDOT said.

Other roads in Somerset County that were closed by flooding included Route 4015, Quecreek Road, from the intersection of First Street to the intersection of Bluebird Spring Road in Lincoln Township; Route 601 from Conn Road to Bluebird Spring Road in Lincoln Township; Route 3007, Humbert Road, from Route 281 to Chicken Bone Hollow Road in Lower Turkeyfoot Township; Route 4055, Gilmore Access Road, from Route 601 to Route 281 in Somerset Borough; Route 4016, Moonlite Park Road, from Route 985 to Soap Hollow Road in Conemaugh Township; and Route 985 from Saylor School Road to Pikeview Drive in Conemaugh Township.

Route 4055 in Somerset Borough and Route 601 in Lincoln Township both reopened late Friday.

In Conemaugh Township, Somerset County, the Benscreek stream – normally less than 10 yards wide – swelled to more than 100 yards wide in some areas.

A half-dozen homes were flooded along the Benscreek on Route 985 south of the North Fork Country Club. Tow trucks pulled several cars from a submerged Route 985.

“I don’t know what it was like in 1977, when I was 4, but this is the worst I’ve seen,” said a firefighter with the Conemaugh Township Volunteer Fire Company.

A steady rain all day combined with snowmelt on steep hillsides to flood area waterways. The hills overlooking Route 985 brought a stream of water across the highway into Benscreek. The road held knee-high water in places.

The next storm system will move in late today into early Sunday and is expected to dump up to 3 inches of sleet and snow on the region, AccuWeather meteorologist Jon Pacheco said.

In the Seward area, the underpass on Route 56 at Route 711 was closed due to flooding around 5 p.m. Traffic was detoured through New Florence and then back onto Route 56, said a spokesman for the Seward Volunteer Fire Company. The underpass will remain closed because the nearby Conemaugh River is expected to crest at 2 feet above flood stage this morning.

Across Pennsylvania, hundreds of schools closed Friday as snow and freezing rain spread across the state.

The National Weather Service issued a winter storm warning for all of northern Pennsylvania and forecast a sloppy mix of snow, sleet, freezing rain and rain for the southern half of the state.



Tribune-Democrat reporters Bernie Hornick and Frank Sojak and The Associated Press contributed to this story.