Allegheny River Ice Jam Causing Flooding Problems In Clarion Co.
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) – Rain and ice jams are causing a variety of flooding concerns around the area.
According to the National Weather Service, a Flood Warning remains in effect for Armstrong and Clarion counties until 11:30 a.m. Monday.
As of 4 p.m. Sunday, the Allegheny River was at 23.7 feet near Parker. Flood Stage is 20 feet.
At 25 feet, floodwaters will cover Route 268.
Huge chunks of ice turned the Allegheny River into a frozen pond near West Monterey in Clarion County.
Some of the renegade ice broke off and flooded Ken Luffy's garage.
"They called me early this morning and said the river was in my driveway. By the time I got here, it was four feet in my garage," he said.
The ice was moving steadily down river throughout the evening and into the morning, but sometime after 7 a.m., it stopped and huge chunks moved toward homes along West Monterey Road
John Anthony, 91, remembers a similar ice jam that happened two days from this date in March of 1959.
"It's packed in pretty good this time I think it's packed in a more than it was before," he said.
Sunday night, the ice was showing very little movement as West Monterey firefighters were forced to watch and wait.
"Just keep an eye and alert residents if they have more flooding. They know what to do and help them get out of here," West Monterey Fire Chief Jason Alworth said.
They'll be keeping an eye on the City of Parker - four miles upstream - where ice dominates the river.
It's already flooding streets and basements .
"There's probably about eight feet of water in my basement and the furnace is on the roof. It's probably two inches from the furnace," Zack Williamson said.
For now, the ice appears to be stagnant and that's has people in Parker concerned.
"If it doesn't move and were melting and something breaks off up river, we're going to be in trouble," Nichoel Barger said.
"It will move for a while, then it will stop. Hopefully, it will go out in West Monterey and this will all go down and it will start moving again," Parker Mayor Bill McCall said.
In the meantime, the mayor says they're hoping for sunshine, warm weather and a little bit of luck.
In Pittsburgh, a Flood Advisory for the Ohio River remains in effect until Tuesday morning.
As of 9 a.m. Sunday, the river was at 20.6 feet. Flood stage is 25 feet.
The river is expected to rise to about 21.5 feet Sunday evening. At 22 feet, the Tenth Street Bypass floods.