Downed trees add to flooding concerns

A downed tree at the foot of Power Street in Webster, Pa., after a storm two weeks ago dropped as much as 2 feet of snow on southwestern Pennsylvania. (Scott Beveridge photo)

By Scott Beveridge

Trees took the brunt of the big storm this month, as so many of them have been uprooted under the weight of the heavy snow and ice.

Many of them still are leaning across power lines, appearing as if another inch or two of fresh snow would lead to more outages. More than two weeks after Stormageddon, the roads are still like obstacle courses with tree braches sticking out of the snowplow mounds.

But the toppled birch, maple and weeping willow trees along the Monongahela and Youghiogheny rivers, which spill into the Ohio, are causing even greater concerns if a major flood develops during a quick thaw accompanied by rain. A river rushing with big trees would have devastating consequences on everything in their wake, and could clog and lead to worse flooding.

The US Army Corps of Engineers said Friday it is “fighting a flood” that has the potential of putting the Three Rivers in downtown Pittsburgh 25 feet of flood stage. It would be a record cresting along the Monongahela, Allegheny and Ohio rivers. A perfect storm could be in the making with more than 50 inches of snow in the mountains and at least 7 ½ inches of rain in the snow pack.

High water is a concern as far downstream as St. Paul, Minn., where there is a 90 percent chance the Mississippi will flood because of severe winter weather, the Twin Cities Pioneer Press reported Friday.

“In many places, flooding is almost a sure bet, forecasters said, with a substantial possibility of severe or record levels,” the newspaper said.

The following are quotes reporters at the Observer-Reporter newspaper in Washington, Pa., gathered last week about the threat of high water:

"It's going to take a miracle to get rid of this snow without a flood," said Bill Drzal, a meteorologist and hydrologist for the Weather Service in Pittsburgh.

"We are praying for a slow warm-up, but there is so much water in the snow," said Jeff Yates, public safety director in Washington County.

“There is the potential it could be one of the worst,” said Jeff Hawk, corps spokesman in Pittsburgh.

Snowtorious Big drags on

By Scott Beveridge

WEBSTER, Pa. – The power company finally arrived here today, five days after Stormageddon knocked out the power, and the orphaned cat and I are enjoying the electricity and heat.

Comcast, though, has yet to restore the cable television and Internet in the village of Webster in southwestern Pennsylvania, but we are not complaining.

People around here are experiencing far worse problems in this disaster that is still playing out as high winds are creating drifts and threatening to play more havoc on the utilities. The whiners around these parts who are still safe need to shut up at this point.

A house up Webster Hollow Road from mine burned to the ground last night. Police said no one was injured, and the cause of the blaze is still unknown. I suspect it had something to do with its occupants attempting to keep warm in this nightmare.

An hour or so ago my buddy who freelances for one of the local television stations called to say he heard a house a mile down a different road here is splitting apart under the weight of all this snow and ice.

Right now, I'm too exhausted to go outside in the bitter cold to report on that situation. I'll see you tomorrow.

Surviving Stormageddon Day 3

Cold and ignored in Westmoreland County

By Scott Beveridge

WEBSTER, Pa. – Allegheny Power, you are not entirely to blame for the power outage in this tiny village nestled among four municipalities with a combined population nearly 30,000 people.

We here in Webster, Pa., have long known that global positioning systems direct first-time visitors, inexperienced ambulance drivers and delivery trucks to nearby Donora, in place of our houses.

So here I offer the utility company a photograph of as many as 10 trees that were uprooted by "Stormageddon" after it began Friday night, pulling down the cable and electric wires. My brother remarked just two weeks ago that there was no excuse for these trees being ignored by the power company for so long because some of them were already leaning on those wires.

Meanwhile, I saw my first Allegheny Power repair truck today across the Monongahela River in Donora, a town that never lost its power to the heavy snow storm. It passed too quickly before I had a time to flag down its driver and direct him to tiny Webster with a population of fewer than 200 people.

Linemen, if you see this, the answer to our power outage can be found on Webster-Hollow Road. There are signs directing motorists to Webster from Route 51 in two locations in Rostraver Township.

By the way, can anyone tell me the identity of the emergency management director in wealthy Rostraver? To this date Sunday afternoon, no one has gone door-to-door in Webster to check on the elderly and sick, or to direct the neighborhood without heat to the nearest shelter for warmth and food. It's shameful.

Here I sit at Ringgold High School, near Monongahela, where senior citizens have been sheltering and raving about the local police and firemen for the wonderful job they have done to get them to safety. Thank you Monongahela.

UPDATE:



The situation facing the power company is much worse that it seemed before I ventured out of town this afternoon to Monongahela.

There are large trees down across utility wires along the entire 5-mile distance along routes 906 and 136 between Webster and that neighboring city. It will not be an easy task to remove them and restore power in the area.

Meanwhile, I passed a large convoy of line repair trucks tonight on Route 51 in West Mifflin heading south in the direction of Rostraver. The amount of houses without power in this area appears to be widespread along Route 201 in Rostraver and in Jefferson Hills, Allegheny County.

The natural gas heater and fireplace at my house had the indoor temperature at 68 degrees at last check. Others are not so lucky.

UPDATE No. 2:

As it happens, I have taken in the evacuated neighbor's overly-attentive cat until this mother of a storm has lifted and power returns to the neighborhood.

The candles are lit once more. Abbey has fresh cat liter, food and water, yet she still whines.

Outside, really the only way to describe it would be to say a hurricane swept through here Friday. The emergency folks are saying over there in Washington County it could be Friday until power is restored in some parts there. Here, in Westmoreland County, I am still in the dark and no one has said, to my knowledge, when rescuers will chop up the hundreds of trees that have fallen around here in order to return power to these parts.

Meanwhile, the cat is crying, seemingly afraid of its new digs. I want to tell her she should be so lucky to be warm once more as the temperature is dipping outside to 10 degrees.

To her credit, it is dark and scary tonight.

The human salt spreader

Jamie Stache must wear out the heels of his boots fast while dragging his feet and also spreading sidewalk salt, seated in a cart pulled by a mini snow plow. The Washington County Housing Authority worker is shown today at Lincoln Terrace in Washington, Pa. His coworker, Clyde Myers, is steering the rig. (Photo: Scott Beveridge/Observer-Reporter)