Businesses and residents throughout Elk County continue to be affected by the widespread flooding event that hit the region on Wednesday.
Elk County Emergency Management Agency Director Michael McCalister told The Era Friday that no injuries have yet been reported, but extensive damage assessment is ongoing.
Continuous heavy downpours mid-week resulted in more than 16 feet of standing water in some locations on Thursday, forcing the evacuation of schools and apartment complexes, as well as waterborne rescue of stranded residents and a slew of road closures.
Clean-up and damage assessment efforts began Friday and will likely continue for a few weeks at least, according to McCalister.
“We’re doing pretty well, progressively moving forward,” McCalister said. “We brought two more damage assessment teams in today, for a total of five for PEMA (Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency).
“Then the (American) Red Cross has a number of their own assessment teams out as well,” he went on. “They started in Ridgway and made their way out around the county from there doing different types of assessment.”
Reports have indicated that Ridgway and Johnsonburg may have got it the worst, but several other communities have also felt an impact. McCalister said Jay Township down Route 255 into Penfield in Clearfield County have “some water damage,” and Horton Township going into Brockway had a “fair amount of damage.
“St. Marys, Ridgway, Johnsonburg — all the communities had water issues,” he said. “I’m sure some other places were affected too, but those were the hotspots.”
According to McCalister no reports of water boil requirements were issued, though he did know of some areas that had water use limitations. Other than that, residents continue to seek aid in pumping water from their basements and to discover how much damage the high water levels caused to their homes, driveways, roads and properties, he said.
The flooding took a toll on businesses as well.
McCalister knew of several businesses that were still closed Friday, working to clean up debris and fix up damage. “There are a number of them that are closed and number that were affected, but I’m not sure which are closed or for how long they are closed,” he said, listing Sheetz, Rite Aid and NAPA in Ridgway and saying he knew of CVS in Johnsonburg for sure.
Ryan Sheetz, director of brand with Sheetz Inc., said the Sheetz location in Ridgway remains closed, and a re-open date has not yet been determined.
According to Sheetz, 18 inches of water flooded the outside of the store, while inside there was a water mark at 13 inches.
“The priority is obviously on cleaning it as thoroughly as we can and doing it as safely as we can,” Sheetz said. “It’s safe to say we did lose some kitchen equipment and shelving fixtures, as well as any product that may have been compromised. We tend to treat that pretty aggressively, we don’t like to take risks with things like that.”
He said the store’s development, construction, quality assurance and store operations teams, along with professional cleaners and inspectors, are doing a “really thorough sweep” at the store.
“We’re seeing what degree of construction is needed to fix it and look forward to getting back up and running and being part of the community again,” Sheetz stated.
Meanwhile, Domtar’s communications representative, Craig Timm, said the Johnsonburg mill came out relatively unscathed.
“Domtar does have a flood plan that is activated during these types of events,” Timm said. “All employees were safe during the incident and any affect on operations was minimal.
“Since we are basically a 24/7 operation we have personnel and duties assigned that assist in the case of extreme weather events such as the flooding this week,” he added.
Timm was not in a position to release whether or how much water entered the plant or if there is any environmental risk should floodwaters go through the facility.
Also witnessing the aftermath on Friday was U.S. Rep. Glenn Thompson, R-Pa., who made the trip to Elk County from Harrisburg to assess the situation. During his visit, he met with officials in Ridgway Borough and took a tour of the damage, according to McCalister.
Attempts to contact Thompson for comment were not successful by press time Friday night.
The American Red Cross issued a news release Friday, reporting its distribution of cleanup kits, water and snacks. Their response effort will continue today with a service center at Ridgway Central Fire Station at 30 N. Broad St. to assist residents who have suffered storm damage.
The center will be open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. today, Sunday and Monday; appointments not needed. Residents can also contact the Red Cross office in St. Marys at 814-834-2915.
The Red Cross advises residents to look for loose power lines, damaged gas lines, foundation cracks and other forms of damage before re-entering their homes. If a resident smells gas or hears a hissing noise, they should leave the property immediately and call the fire department.
During clean-up, people should wear protective clothing, including rubber gloves and rubber boots, the organization notes. Materials such as cleaning products, paint, batteries, contaminated fuel or damaged fuel containers are dangerous; residents should check with authorities for disposal to avoid risk, according to the Red Cross.
Other flood recovery tips are available online at www.redcross.org or on the American Red Cross Flood App.
