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Institute Insights: Support education to make our region better

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Luzerne County borrowing plan set for presentation Tuesday

<p>We came &#8220;this close&#8221; to a full blown disastrous flood on Sept. 9, 2011.</p><p>Fortunately, the Wyoming Valley Levee System heightened in the late 1990s and early 2000s withstood the greatest challenge from a historic Susquehanna River crest of 42.66 feet.</p><p>Municipalities such as Exeter, Jenkins Township, Plains Township, Shickshinny and West Pittston were not so lucky as those municipalities are not protected by a levee.</p><p>It&#8217;s been eight years since the river threatened most of the Wyoming Valley. It almost seems like yesterday.</p><p><strong>Timeline of Events</strong></p><p><strong>Aug. 28, 2011:</strong> Hurricane Irene hugged the New Jersey coastline dumping nearly four inches of rain across Luzerne County, causing flash flooding, power outages and downed trees. Residents near Solomon Creek in South Wilkes-Barre were evacuated. Damage was estimated at $3.4 million in Luzerne County. The Susquehanna River crested just above 18 feet in Wilkes-Barre.</p><p><strong>Sept. 6, 2011:</strong> With a saturated ground, Tropical Storm Lee began moving up the East Coast and merged with another storm system that stalled over the Appalachian mountain range in Pennsylvania with rainfall projections of up to six inches. Flash flood watches were issued. The Susquehanna River in Wilkes-Barre was projected to reach 28 feet on Sept. 9.</p><p>&#8220;With all the rain we&#8217;ve had, the ground is super saturated. There is no absorption in the ground. Any water that falls is going to run right into creeks,&#8221; said then-Luzerne County Emergency Management Coordinator Steve Bekanich.</p><p><strong>Sept. 7, 2011:</strong> Situation becomes more serious as meteorologists revised their forecast with up to 12 inches of rain in the upper Susquehanna River Basin. Emergency officials advise approximately 50,000 people in low-lying areas to evacuate their homes as the Susquehanna River was projected to crest at 38.5 feet. Many roads were flooded and schools were closed. Officials continued to meet throughout the day and night to determine if a mandatory evacuation is required.</p><p>&#8220;&#8230;within less than four hours we went from a very minor event&#8230;to a major potentially catastrophic event for our area,&#8221; Bekanich said during a news conference.</p><p><strong>Sept. 7-8, 2011 overnight:</strong> A decision is made to erect the flood walls at the Market Street and Veterans Memorial bridges, Route 11 in Edwardsville, and the Brookside section of Wilkes-Barre. Flood walls are also closed on three of the four Solomon Creek bridges in South Wilkes-Barre.</p><p><strong>Sept. 8, 2011:</strong> 5 a.m. - Emergency management officials took part in a conference call with the National Weather Service in Binghamton, N.Y., and learned the Susquehanna River may reach 41 feet.</p><p><strong>Sept. 8, 2011:</strong> 6 a.m. - Emergency management officials order a mandatory evacuation of low-lying areas including municipalities protected by the levees affecting approximately 110,000 residents. Then-Wilkes-Barre Mayor Tom Leighton issued a mandatory evacuation of all residents in the city&#8217;s flood zone to be out of their homes by 4 p.m.</p><p><strong>Sept. 8, 2011:</strong> Roadways not already closed due to flooding become jammed with motorists. North Cross Valley Expressway becomes a parking lot due to motorists stopping on the bridge to view the river. Hotels not in the flood zone report they are at full capacity. Shelters are set up in school gymnasiums not in the flood zone. A mandatory 9 p.m. curfew is in place throughout the Wyoming Valley. The National Guard patrol a darkened Wilkes-Barre City as electrical grids were turned off.</p><p>Flooding begins in Duryea by the Lackawanna River, the Mark II Plaza in Edwardsville, Exeter, Plainsville in Plains Township, Plymouth Township, Shickshinny and West Pittston. Officials become concerned as water began to seep through the levee in Forty Fort.</p><p><strong>Sept. 8, 2011:</strong> Sometime between 11 p.m. and 12 a.m. - the river gauge near the Luzerne County Courthouse goes offline due to river flooding.</p><p><strong>Sept. 9, 2011:</strong> 3 a.m. - Middle Atlantic River Forecast Center in a phone call reports the river crested at 42.66 feet basing their decision on visual observations.</p><p><strong>Sept. 9, 2011: </strong>Kenneth Stephens Sr., Harry Thomas and James Aaron helped rescue more than 45 people from their flooded homes in Plainsville who initially believed the river would crest at 38 feet. They used a front end loader to remove three to four people at a time to higher ground.</p><p><strong>Sept. 10, 2011:</strong> Evacuated residents were permitted to return to their homes except those in flooded areas of Duryea, Jenkins Township, Plainsville, Shickshinny and Plymouth Township.</p><style>
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<div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/web1_river-west-pittston-1.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">An aerial picture of West Pittston on Sept. 9, 2011. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/web1_river-west-pittston-1.jpg</photo0><caption0>An aerial picture of West Pittston on Sept. 9, 2011. </caption0><photoCredit0>Times Leader file photo </photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/web1_flood-2011-1.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">An aerial picture of Kingston and Wilkes-Barre on Sept. 9, 2011. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/web1_flood-2011-1.jpg</photo1><caption1>An aerial picture of Kingston and Wilkes-Barre on Sept. 9, 2011. </caption1><photoCredit1>Times Leader file photo </photoCredit1></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Ed Lewis</p><p>elewis@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div>

Look Back: Reporter recalls events of September 2011