RSS 2.0 FeedAugust 19, 2011, Bellmore Life
The Bellmores battered by Sunday rains
Storns affect many local residents
Homes on Eastern Avenue, near Mill Pond, were flooded by high water tables seeping throughout the basement floor. Both the furnace and hot water heater pilot lights are submerged. Bellmore Life photo by Douglas Finlay
Bellmore was battered by rains of up to nine inches on Sunday, causing widespread damage from flooding and power outages to select areas of the town. One woman was rescued before drowning.
Hard hit were houses on streets bordering on the Smith Pond, in which one resident, who asked to remain anonymous, told this newspaper that had the dredging for Smith Pond gone through as it was supposed last year, “none of this flooding would have happened.”
Jack Minoque, a resident of Merokee Drive, said that someone “was working on a project in the pond, and the worker left the pond to do another project. He left floating balloons of some sort and they have blocked the storm drain opening into the pond.”
The water, he said, “came up to my back yard.”
Last year the county finalized plans to dredge Smith Pond but only sporadic work has taken place since that finalization.
“I don’t know if the dredging would have prevented the flooding,” said county Legislator David Denenberg. “If the system is overwhelmed, and the water table is high,” no dredging would have stopped the flooding.
Tom Lamendola, a resident of Merokee Place for 37 years, said that “This is the worst flooding I’ve ever seen in my house.”
He said that the insurance company explained to him that because the flooding waters came up through his basement floor, he was ineligible to receive insurance to cover his losses.
“I must have lost $4,000 worth of valuables,” he said, as he showed this newspaper his soaked, finished basement. “It was truly overwhelming to see it flood like that,” he said.
Across the street, at Sally Rosenblum’s home, a basement restoration company was cleaning out her basement as well.
Bordering the Smith Pond, water from the pond came up almost to the top of her five-foot wrought-iron fence, submerging her complete back yard in water, strands of weeds dangling from the fence after being deposited once the water subsided from her back yard.
“Nassau County came yesterday to see if we needed help draining our basement,” remarked Ms. Rosenbaum, a senior citizen.
Mr. Denenberg said he got calls as early as 6 a.m. on Sunday morning about flooding taking place at Smith Pond.
He told this newspaper he went with other Department of Pubic Works employees to the pond, where they all put on overalls to wade into waist-deep water to help clean out the weirs, collection devices that had become clogged from rain debris.
“The county had cleaned the weirs the day before,” he said, “but the rain came down at 2-3 inches per hour,” overtaxing the system and creating the flooding.
“Systems can only carry so much,” he said. “If the weirs can’t take it,” there will be flooding, he said.
On Merokee Drive, the fire department requested LIPA to shut off the power on the street because so many basements had become flooded and residents were still waiting to have power restored to turn on their sump pumps.
Another resident of the street, who also requested anonymity, said his whole basement was flooded.
Eastern Avenue, which borders the western edge of the Mill Pond on Merrick Road on the Wantagh-Bellmore border, was also hit hard by flooding. Garden hoses were seen snaking out from back doors and water draining from them into the streets.
An underground stream that feeds into Mill Pond is thought to be the cause of basement flooding on that street.
“The underground water table is higher around ponds and the bays,” said Mr. Denenberg, and can cause flooding when rains are severe, as they were on Sunday.
Bellmore FD rescues woman
Meanwhile, the Bellmore Fire Department responded to 25 alarms during Sunday’s deluge. The record-breaking rainfall caused major road flooding, downed power lines and multiple electrical emergencies in homes throughout Bellmore.
The alarms included automatic alarms, oil burner puff backs and electrical problems caused by flooding. North Bellmore Fire Department was called for mutual aid to assist when six alarms were received within 30 minutes.
The most serious occurrence occurred when the Bellmore FD was called to a water rescue to the rear of a Merokee Drive home at 12:37 p.m. Bellmore Engine 603 and Heavy Rescue 607 responded with one of Bellmore’s three inflatable rescue boats. A county Department of Public Works employee was clearing storm drains to help ease flooding conditions at Merokee Preserve Pond [Smith Pond]. The worker fell into the rising water and was pulled into the drain.
When coworkers were unable to free her, they called 911. Firefighters had to cut their way through two fences to enter an adjacent yard. They found the victim submerged in water up to her neck. Ex- Chief Thomas Stoerger threw a life ring attached to 50 feet of rope to the victim.
She was able to grab hold of the life ring and firefighters hauled her to safety. The victim was evaluated by fire medics but refused to be transported to the hospital.
The call volume continued as the rains decreased. The last alarm was received
– Vin Scaduto
With additional reporting by Pete Paguaga and Naomi Volk
