Print

Email story

Comment

Email editor

Floods pour misery on Northeast

By ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published May 15, 2006

CONCORD, N.H. - Torrential rain forced hundreds of people from their homes in parts of New England on Sunday, as water flowed over dams and washed out roads.

The governors of New Hampshire and Massachusetts declared states of emergency, activating the National Guard to help communities respond to the storm. Maine's governor also declared a state of emergency for one county.

"It's a very serious situation," said New Hampshire Gov. John Lynch, adding that forecasters were predicting 12 to 15 inches of rain by the end of the storm in parts of southern New Hampshire. "It continues to change and the situation continues to worsen."

A dam in Milton, N.H., was in danger of failing, which could send a 10-foot wall of water downstream, the National Weather Service said in a bulletin. People downstream were being evacuated in the town. The state Office of Emergency Management said at least a dozen dams were being closely watched.

In Massachusetts, cars were pulled from flooded streets in Peabody, about 20 miles north of Boston, and about 300 people were evacuated from an apartment complex for seniors.

About 150 residents in Melrose, Mass., had to leave their homes after sewage lines were overwhelmed, backing up into houses, Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney said.

Some parts of New Hampshire had seen 7 inches of rain by midday Sunday and forecasters expected up to 5 more inches during the day.

About 100 residents were evacuated from their homes in Wakefield, N.H., because of concerns about two dams in the area.

Officials also reported a railroad culvert and embankment washed out in Milton, with train tracks suspended in midair. And the local emergency management office in Hooksett said the town essentially was closed because so many roads were flooded.

Tom Johnson said water was flowing on Sunday into the basement of his Salem home, where a pump that handles 1,500 gallons of water an hour was not keeping up. "There are areas in my back yard that are probably 3 feet deep and climbing as we speak," Johnson said.

In Maine, flooding was reported on 60 roads in the southern part of the state, governor's spokeswoman Crystal Canney said.

nA strong line of storms moved through portions of Texas on Sunday, causing flash flooding and at least one tornado. There were no immediate reports of serious injuries. Houston received an inch of rain in 15 minutes, said Kent Prochazka, a weather service meteorologist in Houston.

[Last modified May 15, 2006, 08:10:05]