In the aftermath of Hurricane Irene, many upstate New York communities are dealing with disaster. The last 48 hours have seen businesses and homes destroyed, communities isolated and major roads closed for an indefinite time.
Interstate 90, the New York State Thruway, has had several closures.
* Between Herkimer and the Interstate 88 exit in Schenectady, the road is closed in both directions. This major east-west route is closed for 117 miles.
* Interstate 87, the Thruway's north-south route, reopened the section that had been closed in the Newburgh area. The 30-mile stretch of road suffered both flooding and landslides after the hurricane passed.
* YNN has a partial list of road and bridge closures in the Albany, Schenectady and Troy area.
* Poughkeepsie received severe flooding from Fallkill Creek. This small stream is reported by the Poughkeepsie Journal to have flooded much of the north side of the city. At least a dozen streets were closed due to flooding. Thirty people were rescued from the flooding. About 1,500 homes and businesses lost power.
* Wappinger Creek, south of Poughkeepsie, rose from just less than 4 feet to more than 15 feet in the flooding. The latest gauge reading shows it just under flood stage at 7.23 feet. The rate of flow went from 150 cubic feet per second to more than 11,000 cfs at its peak flood. The latest flow is measured at 2,470 cfs.
* The Hudson River below Poughkeepsie has risen about 6 feet and is 3 feet above flood stage.
* Flooding from Hurricane Irene has been severe in the Mohawk River and its tributaries.
* At Little Falls, just west of Herkimer, the water level rose from 4.9 feet to 13.6 feet before receding to the latest level of 9 feet. The Mohawk reached a peak stream flow of 16,400 cfs from 2,600 cfs and has slowed to the latest reading of 6,140 cfs.
* In Schenectady, the Mohawk River rose from 12.5 feet at 3 a.m. Sunday to 26.1 feet by 3 p.m. Sunday. The last reading showed the river at 15.5 feet.
* The Albany Times Union reports the flooding in the area forced the evacuation of St. Mary's Hospital in Amsterdam. In Troy, a mudslide destroyed three homes and a business. Parts of the city of Schenectady and the village of Waterford, where the Mohawk flows into the Hudson, had to be evacuated.
* In the Utica/Rome area, the Mohawk River and its tributaries rose but it was localized flooding that did much of the damage. The Observer-Dispatch reports evacuations in the communities of Paris, Chadwicks, Whitesboro and Utica. WKTV reports in Yorkville that the flooding was caused by debris lodged under a bridge creating a dam and forcing Sauquoit Creek out of its banks.
* Authorities have been extremely concerned about the status of the Gilboa dam. The dam creates the Schoharie Reservoir which is one of the two main sources of drinking water for New York City.
* The Prattsville gauge, upstream of the dam, saw the flow go from 210 cfs at 1 a.m. Sunday to 47,400 cfs at 10 a.m. when the gauge broke. Schoharie Creek rose from 3.24 feet to 18.47 before readings ended. 87 rescues were conducted in the village of Prattsville, according to CNN, including 25 people cut off in a flooded motel.
* At the Gilboa dam, the reservoir level rose 20 feet and set a new record. The level has since dropped ten feet. The NYC Department of Environmental Protection reports that the dam is structurally sound despite the flooding having overtopped the structure. Evacuation orders for below the dam have been lifted.
