Deadly Northeast Rainstorms Force Emergency Evacuations

WASHINGTON, DC, June 28, 2006 (ENS) - Torrential rainstorms that have continued most of this week have killed at least 11 people across the Northeastern United States and forced hundreds of thousands of people to evacuate their homes. Power lines are down across the region and roads and bridges are washed out.

Pennsylvania Governor Edward Rendell declared a disaster emergency in 46 counties on Wednesday.

Some 200,000 people in the vicinity of Wilkes-Barre were ordered to evacuate Wednesday because of rising water on the Susquehanna River. The northeastern Pennsylvania city is protected by levees, but county officials said the river is expected to crest near the tops of the 40 foot floodwalls.

"The serious impact of this storm on the immediate and long-term economy of this region and the state represents a major hardship requiring a comprehensive federal, state and local partnership for effective recovery," Governor Rendell said. "We will do everything we can to help the people affected contend with and recover from this natural disaster."

Flooded area in rural Pennsylvania is typical of areas affected by flooding across the Northeast. (Photo courtesy Penn State)

Thousands more were ordered to evacuate across New Jersey, New York and Maryland as rivers and streams overtopped their banks, washing out roads and bridges.

Coast Guard rescue crews, working with the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency, are rescuing people stranded on their rooftops in northern Pennsylvania. Initial reports indicated that 50 to 70 people are stranded on roof tops near Scranton.

Two helicopter crews from Air Station Elizabeth City, North Carolina, navigated through strong thunder storms around the back side of the low pressure system that is pounding the East Coast. The Coast Guard does not have exact information on the number of people rescued. Search and rescue operations are ongoing.

Engineers on-site at Maryland's Needwood Dam have found cracks in the dam face and suspect structural damage, forcing the mandatory evacuation of about 1,200 families in the Rockville area of Montgomery County, Maryland.

As of 3:00 am Wednesday, the engineers predicted the structural integrity of the dam may be compromised and failure of the dam could be iminent.

T. Howard Duckett Dam near the city of Laurel, Maryland (Photo courtesy City of Laurel)

Baltimore City opened one shelter at a high school for 72 people after a homeless shelter flooded, and an apartment building roof collapsed. Maryland has not yet declared a state of emergency, but a coastal flood warning has been issued for Anne Arundel County and the Western Shore.

District of Columbia Mayor Anthony Williams Tuesday declared a state of public emergency and activated the District's Emergency Operations Center. Police, fire, transportation, public works and human services personnel worked through the night to address incidents resulting from the storm.

Rains temporarily subsided through most of the region on Wednesday with only isolated heavy rain in pockets, prompting Mayor Williams to lift the state of emergency.

"We were concerned that another four to six inches of rain last night could have made an already bad situation truly scary," said Mayor Williams.

"Fortunately, and unexpectedly, the weather took a turn for the better and gave us a day filled with sun, allowing us to dig out and residents to dry out. I've lifted the state of emergency, but we will monitor the forecast over the next four days and may reassess at any time."

Traffic today at Washington Circle NW. The DC Metropolitan area got a short sunny break this afternoon, but forecasters predict more rain is on the way. (Photo courtesy Trafficland)

Emergency managers are still battling high water on DC roadways and basement flooding in government buildings.

The rainfall caused power outages that have knocked out traffic lights and disrupted electrical service to thousands of homes and businesses in the metropolitan DC area.

"Pepco crews continue to work around the clock to restore power, but as quickly as we restore outages, new outages are reported due to the continued rain and flooding across the area," said the company, provides electric service to more than 725,000 residential and commercial customers in Washington, DC, and Montgomery and Prince George's counties in Maryland

Forecasters predict the western pressure system will bring rainfall ranging from one to three inches in western Pennsylvania, two to four inches in central Pennsylvania and potentially in excess of six inches in eastern Pennsylvania dependent on its convergence with another storm system moving north. Main stem reaches of rivers throughout Pennsylvania are expected to crest Thursday morning and into the mid-day.

"Right now our goal is to support the emergency needs of all affected communities with shelters and meals," said Carol Yelverton, spokesperson for the American Red Cross. "Afterwards, we will help people get back on their feet as quickly as possible with clean up kits, water and food."