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Seven dead in US Floods, 200,000 Ordered Evacuated
New York (AFP) Jun 28, 2006 Flooding killed at least seven people, cut power to thousands and caused mass evacuations in the northeastern United States on Wednesday. In one of the worst hit areas in eastern Pennsylvania, county officials ordered the evacuation of up to 200,000 people from low-lying areas around the Susquehanna River. The order covered the city of Wilkes-Barre which is protected by a system of dykes similar to the one around New Orleans that was breached by Hurricane Katrina last year with devastating consquences. "We were afraid of a New Orleans-type situation where we just couldn't get people out," Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell said, explaining the evacuation move. A state of emergency was declared in 46 Pennsylvania counties and Rendell said helicopters had already been brought in to fly search and rescue missions, plucking stranded residents from their rooftops. "The next 12 to 14 hours will tell whether this is a full-scale disaster," the governor told CNN. The fatalities from the regional floods included three dead in Maryland, three in New York state and one in Pennsylvania. In Maryland, two men and one woman drowned after flood waters swept them from a stalled pickup truck late Tuesday in Frederick County, the sheriff's department said. Another person died "as a result of flooding" in Wayne County, Pennsylvania, emergency officials said. New York state police confirmed three storm-related fatalities, including two truck drivers whose vehicles crashed into a sinkhole on Interstate 88 in Delaware County. A man was confirmed dead in nearby Chenango County after his car was swept away by floodwaters. A leaky dam, swollen to near-bursting after days of torrential rain, forced 2,300 people to evacuate their homes in Montgomery County, Maryland, outside Washington, officials said. As Maryland's Lake Needwood swelled to 25 feet (eight meters) above its normal level, police went door to door to order people from their homes around the lake, Sue Tucker, public information officer for Montgomery County, told AFP. Bill Delaney, assistant public information officer for the Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Service, said it was not yet clear when residents could return. "Right now, we just want to make sure everyone is safe and out of harm's way, and we don't want to return them until we have assurances from the experts that the danger has passed and it would be safe for them to return," he said. A stationary storm front dumped up to 10 inches (25 centimeters) of rain in the Washington area and elsewhere along the US East Coast from Saturday to late Tuesday. Washington Mayor Anthony Williams declared a state of emergency for the capital, enabling him to request assistance from the National Guard, after flooding caused extensive damage and disruption.
Source: United Press International Community Email This Article Comment On This Article Related Links - Bringing Order To A World Of Disasters When the Earth Quakes A world of storm and tempest
Death Toll From Indian Floods Tops 200
Another 11 people have died from lightning strikes and heavy rains in India, officials said Tuesday, taking the death toll since the monsoon began lashing the country last month to 215. |
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