area flooding

[Elspode]

Nice new swimming and kayaking facility they've built, there. Concession stand probably should be set back a little further from the course, though.

[SteveDallas]

I learned today that Knoebels Amusment Park in Elysburg, PA is flooded.

[xoxoxoBruce]

Water parks are cool too.

[xoxoxoBruce]

It would appear that some God's creatures don't mind.

[Undertoad]

I drove back through Riverview and it was fine. Turns out the ground floor of all those apartments is all garages. So they figured on this.

[xoxoxoBruce]

That was a smart move, I wonder if the Township required it or they were thinking ahead?

The ducks and geese were swimming merrily around but what about the other critters?

[Elspode]

Is that a groundhog?

[xoxoxoBruce]

Originally Posted by Elspode

Is that a groundhog?

Yes.

[richlevy]

Originally Posted by Undertoad

I drove back through Riverview and it was fine. Turns out the ground floor of all those apartments is all garages. So they figured on this.

My guess is they fired the architect who planned on second floor garages.

[tw]

For those attempting to understand 'whats and whys', below is the weekly rain map in inches. Left side is Ohio. Right side is Atlantic Ocean off of New Jersey. Upper right corner is New England including Maine. Viewing this picture separately in a 'picture viewer' that can zoom will make three letter city codes visible. New York City is LGA.

Mustard yellow are areas with rain above 8 inches (20 cm). It includes (south to north) Washington DC (lowest), Baltimore MD (BWI), Reading PA (RDG), and Wilkes Barre PA (AVP) (topmost). Five pockets of orange inside that mustard yellow are > 12 inches. For example, one orange pocket is Reading PA (RDG). Binghamton NY (BGM) (dead center in map) is not even in a mustard yellow area. And yet even that rain was too much for Binghamton. Lowest orange spot is in MD (Maryland) adjacent to southwest corner of DE (Delaware) and just below the words "IN INCHES". Largest orange is the upper Chesapeake Bay and bottom of the Susquehanna River in a mostly rural region of MD and PA (that might include Elkton MD).

Most rain was scattered across numerous river basins or dumped in the the upper Cheasapeake Bay. Those river basins are Susquehanna (Binghamton NY and Wilkes Barre PA), Schuykill River (Reading PA to Philadelphia), and Delaware River (entire NJ/PA border and includes Lackawaxen River). Lackawaxen is unique since its entire flow is controlled by a dam that created Lake Wallenpaupak. I watched. They were flowing water through that Wallenpaupak electric generating station all day. More may have been released previously via emergency release chutes in April 2005 (an unannounced manmade flood) that created serious Upper Delaware River damage.

Pictures provided by UT are along Schuykill River that passes from Reading PA in an ESE direction towards Philadelphia (PHL) where rainfall was less than 8 inches (dark green and light green). Generally, anyone flooded by this rain should not be living in that too low area. This was not the Big One; only an unusually large rainfall and not unusually large for areas such as Binghamton NY.

For residents in Yardley PA on the Delaware River, this is the third flood in what - five years? Begs why are they living there. Delaware River received very little rainfall compared to a Big One.

Furthermore, large rainfall areas were distributed among many different river basins. Had that large yellow mustard area moved either west or east, then the Susquehanna or Schuykill River basins would have actually suffered flooding.

[xoxoxoBruce]

The Schuykill River at Philly is draining 1,890 sq/mi.
The Delaware River at Trenton is draining 6,780 sq/mi.
The Susquehanna River at Conowingo is draining 27,100 sq/mi.

[Griff]

Originally Posted by tw

Binghamton NY (BGM) (dead center in map) is not even in a mustard yellow area. And yet even that rain was too much for Binghamton.

Please note the mustard yellow North of Binghamton. Chenango Point in Binghamton is where the Chenango joins the Susquehanna. Parts of Binghamton are low lying and never should have been built on but this storm was not "usual" if you look at the rainfall in the drainage area that is collected and goes through Bing.

[tw]

Originally Posted by Griff

Please note the mustard yellow North of Binghamton. Chenango Point in Binghamton is where the Chenango joins the Susquehanna. Parts of Binghamton are low lying and never should have been built on but this storm was not "usual" if you look at the rainfall in the drainage area that is collected and goes through Bing.

But look at all the other areas that drain through Binghamton that were not yellow. The Johnstown PA (1985?) flood was unique because almost the entire upriver drainage area got 10+ inches of rain within only hours; and all had to drain through Johnstown. Had that been same for Binghamtown, well, then flooding should be expected. This was not a Big One. This on two rivers where most of the drainage area did not suffer 'yellow' rainfall - and still the river basin in Binghamton was too narrow.

To be a significant flood, most of both rivers above Binghamton should have been yellow rainfall. Notice that Wilke Barre and Sunbury both on the same river had less serious (near zero) problems. Wilkes Barre had mostly dark green rainfall upstream AND the flooding from Binghamton. Wilkes Barre took precautions that were mostly unnecessary.

Of course maybe the press suddenly realized after Binghamton that the flooding was really not that serious - was being overhyped. But what we have is a benchmark. Any home flooded by this lesser event should be 'corrected'. That usually means moved. Homes are the one structure that must survive catastrophic events. Businesses, rec fields, parking garages, etc are all sacrificial.

Homes should never be built where flooding will occur. Homes are the one structure we all need intact especially after such events.

[Ibby]

Not anymore...

[Katkeeper]

Thinking ahead about flood plains - in many areas building is not allowed unless the structures can survive flooding without too much damage. I bought a house that had been severely flooded after Hurricane Agnes in 1972. The Redevelopment Authority required that during the renovation all electrical boxes, furnaces, etc., had to be located above the 100 year flood level. New buildings were built with garages on the first floors just as in the Riverview Apts., I think in part because they could not get flood insurance unless they did so. I have stayed in a new Hyatt Hotel in Covington KY which has the lobby on the second floor, and 2 sets of elevators. You take one from the ground floor to the lobby and a second one from the lobby to the floors above. Inconvenient to do with luggage, but flood proof.