Storm floods region

Some residents of Milesburg, Philipsburg and Coburn were rescued by boats as floodwaters surged into their homes after the remnants of Hurricane Ivan dumped 4 to 7 inches of rain on the region, pushing creeks and streams over their banks.

At 2 a.m. Saturday, Centre County commissioners declared a disaster emergency as the second massive rainstorm to hit the county in a week caused flooding that closed roads throughout the region and combined with high winds to leave 1,500 homes and businesses without electricity.

Emergency shelters were set up in Milesburg, Coburn and Spring Mills. Some homes and businesses in Bellefonte were flooded, and low-lying areas and basements around the county were under water.

“Roads to Coburn are completely closed off; no one can get in or out” by vehicle, Timothy Boyde, the county’s director of administrative services, said Saturday afternoon. “Spring Mills is 2 or 3 feet under water.”

By Saturday afternoon, commissioners “stepped back” operations as the Centre Region began to return to normal, Boyde said.

The eastbound lanes of Interstate 80 between Milesburg and Bellefonte were closed by flooding early Saturday, reopening about 2:30 p.m. as the water receded. However, the Juniata River was still rising late Saturday afternoon, prompting the state Department of Transportation to close U.S. Route 322 in the Lewistown Narrows at 6:45 p.m.

A state of emergency was declared in Milesburg at 11 a.m. Saturday. At noon, Rock Spring Water Company in Pennsylvania Furnace asked all customers to stop using water after a power failure shut down its pumping station.

Bald Eagle Creek experienced record flooding, with 16 feet of water reported, AccuWeather forecaster Michael Sager said. Penns Creek was 4 feet above flood stage at 11 a.m. Saturday, recording a depth of 12 feet.

In Gregg Township, waters of the Sinking Creek and Penns Creek reached 9 feet near the Gettig’s Bridge in Spring Mills, flooding the center of town, according to township Fire Chief Doug Young.

Betty Strouse, who lives outside the flooded area, spent Saturday morning preparing eggs, pancakes and coffee for the handful of residents who sought shelter in the Gregg Township Fire Hall.

“Everything’s under water,” Strouse said.

As floodwaters surged just before dawn, about 50 people in Milesburg, including all the residents of the Eagle Valley Personal Care Home on Railroad Street, were evacuated by the Red Cross to the Milesburg Assembly of God Church.

Priscilla Miller-Britts, who lives on High Street in Milesburg, awoke Saturday to men’s voices and searchlights outside her home.

At first, she said, she thought the voices were people coming home from a bar. But then came the knock on her door telling her a voluntary evacuation was under way. Grabbing a change of clothes, books and her toothbrush, Miller-Britts stepped into the rescue boat and floated to dryer ground.

Spring Creek in Bellefonte surged through the low-lying areas of the Victorian community. The normally placid creek roiled and filled its traces near Lamb’s Crossing. Water Street was closed due to flooding in at least two locations.

Talleyrand Park and Schnitzel’s Tavern were under water, as was the Bellefonte Emergency Medical Services shed. The American Philatelic Society’s headquarters in the newly renovated Match Factory managed to escape with only wet carpets.

Philipsburg Mayor Tony Curtorillo said flooding in his community was “terrible.”

Front Street remained open Saturday but was “a lake,” Curtorillo said, adding that Ninth Street was flooded due to construction on the 15th Street extension. Residents in Osceola Mills and along Water Street in the borough were evacuated, some by boat, in the early hours of the morning.

About 1,500 homes and businesses scattered throughout the county lost power during the storm, according to Allegheny Power spokesman Allen Staggers. Most of those outages happened because of the high winds and lightning. Staggers said power had to be disconnected at a trailer park in Unionville because of the flooding and Allegheny Power workers reported a few broken utility poles because of the high water.

By noon Saturday, about 1,100 customers around the county were still without power, Staggers said. Allegheny Power workers most likely will be unable to restore power to those customers until this morning, he said.

Portions of U.S. Route 220 — including the area between Port Matilda and Bald Eagle in Blair County, and from Port Matilda to Skytop — were closed Friday night but reopened about 8:30 a.m. Saturday. Alternate Route 220 from the bottom of Skytop remained closed.

Boyde said floodwaters crested between 1 and 2 p.m. Saturday. But even though waters began to recede, officials were concerned about damage to roadways.

“We’re at the mercy of nature at this point,” Boyde said. “We have to wait for the water to recede to see if the roads are even still there.”