Return to main weather page
Wednesday, August 06, 2003
Heavy rains pound area
By Greg Coffey and Hilary Bentman
Staff Writers
The waves splashed up the sidewalk and onto the concrete steps of Quakertown businesses, then quickly receded into "Lake Broad and Fourth."
Technically, of course, there is no lake at Broad and Fourth streets, but try telling that to drivers who had to navigate their way through 16 inches of water Tuesday night.
"I thought I could make it but it was too late. A wave came up over the hood and I knew that was it," said Roger Sutcliffe of Quakertown, whose car got stuck at about 5 p.m.
A driver in a pickup truck pushed Sutcliffe's car into a nearby gas station parking lot where he was stranded, his car full of water. Traffic slowed to a crawl not just at the intersection, but farther down both roads as the lake expanded.
The scene was replayed throughout Bucks and Montgomery counties Tuesday, as the rain caused car accidents, power outages and traffic jams.
About two-thirds of an inch of rain fell in less than four hours, said Bob Larson, a meteorologist with State College-based AccuWeather Inc.
Two-thirds of an inch might not sound like much, but if it had been snow, it would have been about 7 inches, Larson said.
"It probably seems like more because it all came down at once," he said.
In Horsham, the weather knocked out several traffic signals, including those at the busy intersection of Routes 309 and 63, and Blair Mill and Horsham roads, said Lt. Jon M. Clark. The outages led to major traffic james, he said.
Though not as heavy, the rains reminded Clark of Tropical Storm Allison, the remnants of which blasted through the area in 2001, and killed seven people in Upper Moreland. he said Tuesday's storm was a mere inconvenience compared to Allison.
"We were running, but it wasn't anything we couldn't handle," he said.
The rain knocked out power for 350 residents in North Wales, said Cathy Engel, a Peco spokeswoman. However, Engel said the biggest outage come when lightning struck power lines in West Chester, causing about 4,000 customers to lose power for about three hours.
In Quakertown, Jason Myers of Souderton discovered that steeting a car is a difficult task when you're trying to push it at the same time. Myers' 1989 Dodge Colt stalled as he drove through the intersection.
As the rain poured down and the traffic backed up, Myers, 19, spent several minutes trying to push the car out of traffic until someone offered help.
"The puddle was an inch below the door. If it had been any higher, it would be coming into the car," said Myers, who admitted his car often has trouble in the rain.
Nick Muschlitz, 14, and Billy Gingrich, 13, had ridden their bikes from Coopersburg to Quakertown, not expecting to go for a swim.
Borth about 5 feet tall, the water was up to their knees, and BIlly splashed water on Nick like the two were at the beach, not sitting in front of a gas station.
Quakertown Police Chief James McFadden had no reports of accidents at 5:15 p.m. when the rain stopped.
Some of the problem areas included Mill Street near Fourth, South Main Street, Fourth and Broad, Broad Street at Maple and Chestnit, 10th and Indendence, Allen Lane, and Fifth Street at Juniper and Park.
"It's the low-lying areas," said McFadden, noting these areas have had flooding in the past.
Larson said the weather for the rest of the week is expected to be hot and muggy, with showers likely.
The humidity will continue to be high, he said.
"With so much mositure in the atmosphere, downpours could come at any time," he said.
Mark E. Jolly can be contacted via e-mail at mjolly@phillyburbs.com .
Hilary Bentman can be contacted via e-mail at hbentman@phillyburbs.com .
Article's URL: http://www.phillyburbs.com/pb-dyn/news/113-08062003-137032.html