NORWICH – Flash flood waters from the Canasawacta Creek reached Broad Street Tuesday night, and only receded as the Chenango River on the other side of the city broached flood stage. The flood of 2006 is developing on two fronts, closing streets and bogging-down homes everywhere but the center of the city.
Waters poured down Canasawacta Street late Tuesday in what many are calling the worst flooding to the west side ever. Side streets were soon submerged, “curb to curb,” Emergency Management Director A. Wesley Jones said, and many homes became islands in the muddy run-off. Flooding to the south side of the city submerged streets under 3 feet of water, and more than a third of city roadways were soon shut down. As the water continued to rise, an emergency shelter at the First Baptist Church on West Park Place was, itself, evacuated after early morning water poured in the back door.
“This is significantly worse than the record flood we experienced just last April,” Jones said. “We’ve been advised by the National Weather Service to expect the worst case scenario.” The Evening Sun has received a number of unconfirmed reports that the flooding resulted in a fatality on county Route 34 early this morning.
Throughout the early morning as the creek on the west side of the city subsided, the level of the Chenango River on the east rose above flood stage. The water in the river is currently at 10 and a half feet, or 18 inches above flood stage, and Jones said it may rise another 18 inches or more today.
“It will get worse today before it gets better,” he said. The emergency management director compared today to flooding 14 months ago that covered much of the east side of the city. He said this year’s flooding has the potential to go further.
As of press time this morning, South Broad Street from Hale Street to the southern edge of the city were closed. The intersection of Hale and Birdsall Street was closed. Homes on Willard Court are under several feet of water, and the city waste water treatment facility is flooded.
“Basically, on the entire west side of the city, every street had water flowing down it,” Assistant Highway Superintendent Mark Williams said.
Today, the east side of the city will get the water.
A number of evacuations have taken place throughout the night, as homes throughout the county have fallen under water line. The Red Cross has set up a shelter at Gibson Elementary School on Newton Avenue, and along with the rest of the county, the City of Norwich continues to be in a state of emergency.
Three City of Norwich Police officers answered a steady stream of calls from stranded residents looking for advice this morning, and Jones said if your home becomes flooded, contact the Norwich City Fire Department. The department can be reached at 334-3411, or if you have an emergency, dial 911. Jones went on to say that motorists sight-seeing have created a problem throughout the night, and reminded that knowingly violating a state of emergency is a misdemeanor.
Jones also warns against driving through any flowing water. “It only takes 6 inches of water to carry a car away,” he said.