Tools

Flooded basements, loss of power just some of damage in Utica by storms

By JOLEEN FERRIS

Story Created: Apr 28, 2011 at 1:09 PM EDT

Story Updated: May 3, 2011 at 11:00 AM EDT

UTICA, N.Y. (WKTV) - An extensive amount of rain within a short period of time has ravaged central New York, making numerous roads impassable.

Parts of Barton Ave in South Utica have buckled from the pressure of the water. The heaved roadways resemble damage usually associated with earthquakes.

Nearby Roosevelt Drive is littered with debris, tree branches and pieces of pavement. The street is closed between Barton and Dryden Ave and homeowners there woke to find flood waters inching toward their homes.

"When we looked outside it was like a river. I was just praying on my knees that it would stop because it was getting ready to come into the house," says homeowner Carrie Pizzo, whose basement is filled with water.

The force of the rising water lifted some homes on Roosevelt Drive off of their foundations. Large cracks and even gaping holes are visible in those foundations.

No one on Roosevelt Drive has power following the storm. Some people living there don't even know if they'll be able to come home; some of the houses could be condemned.

The problem is not only a large amount of rain in a short period of time, but also, nearby Halleck's Ravine, which has been causing south Utica homeowners problems for years.

The Utica Fire Department has been on Roosevelt Drive all morning, rescuing people from their homes, pumping out basements and cleaning up debris.

What's On