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The following report was delivered by Supervisor Duke at the April Town Board Meeting
Town Wide Status Report of the 2005 Flood
More than 5 inches fell on parts of the Mid-Hudson Valley over the weekend creating the region’s worst floods in more than half a century. (1955 to be exact.) At the rains peak on Saturday evening residents in Ulster and Green counties were getting as much as ½ an inch of rain per hour. A State of Emergency was declared in Ulster County at 7:00 pm and ended at 4:00 pm Sunday. Art Snyder, Ulster County director of emergency management agreed the flood of 05 is likely a record breaker. “This is probably the most serious flood situation we’ve experienced in the county. There’s widespread damage to both private homes and public infrastructure.” The Rondout Creek reached 25’ in Rosendale, a level not seen since ’55, according to the National Weather Service. In Kerhonkson, a
truck-body full of football equipment being stored at the Vinny Dunn Memorial Field was carried about a mile downstream ending up logged underneath the Kerhonkson Bridge.
The day after, the assessment began. Several roads remained impassable and schools were closed. Here in our area – Route 209 was closed as was the Rondout Central School District. Areas hardest hit in Ulster County include the Rondout Valley, Ellenville, Shandaken, parts of Saugerties and the Town of Ulster.
There were four Red Cross emergency shelters established. To date one emergency shelter remains open in Kingston - Rondout Neighborhood Center at 103 Broadway and will remain open as long as needed.
In the Town of Ulster, over 300 people were evacuated; in Wawarsing as many as 100 resident were evacuated mainly on Carlo Drive, the housing development. Of these 30 homes, probably only two are inhabitable. In Rochester 32 residents were evacuated to the Hudson Valley Resort. As far as I know, two families lost just about everything. Many thanks to Jay Davis for the use of the Resort and to Maureen Sheehan for coordinating the efforts. (Thanks also to David O'Halloran of Pine Grove Resort who offered his facility as a back-up)
Governor George Pataki has declared a “state disaster emergency” in Ulster, Greene, Delaware, Orange and Sullivan counties. This disaster declaration clears red tape for localities seeking financial help from the state. This is also necessary before the region can be declared eligible for federal disaster assistance, which has been called for by State Assemblyman Kevin Cahill, State Senator John Bonacic and US Representative Maurice Hinchey. Officials say it is too early to estimate the financial impact of the flooding described by many as the region’s worst in half a century.
What we can do in this town:
-- Proper documentation about damages improves the likelihood of receiving assistance. Individuals with damaged property should take photos and keep receipts from any repair work. Also, document damaged items that you take to the Transfer Station with any identifications marks such as serial numbers on appliances. We have these forms. If you know of any resident in Town who needs assistance, please have them come to the Town Hall. The form is also available on our web site, where you can print it out.
Fill it out as soon as possible and either bring it to the Town Hall or send it in yourself, the address is at the bottom of the form.
- To help alleviate impact of the flood, the Transfer Station is only charging half-price for everything being brought in as a result of the cleanup from the floods – this will continue through Saturday, April 9.
As a result of a phone call after the board meeting, additional information was gathered from Richard Beckel of the Kerhonkson-Accord First Aid Squad. He indicated they evacuationed about 60 people. Intially they responded to calls for assistance with the car which was trapped in the water in Ellenville. After difficulty in returning to the area, they along with two units from Marbletown, two from Olive, one from Gardener and one from Alamo worked to assist evacuees in Kerhonkson and Accord. Initially residents were evacuated to Kerhonkson elementary school, before going to the Fire House where the Ladies Auxillary had breakfast waiting. Stewarts opened their doors to provided the needed supplies. )
Conclusion: What this has pointed out to me is that we, the Town, need an evacuation plan. We have a 1993 emergency plan but we need to get this updated. I have spoken to Bruce Kirkpatrick deputy director of emergency management for Ulster County and we plan on meeting soon to get this done.
From the bottom of my heart, I cannot thank the Accord Fire company enough for the work they did and the decisions they made. They truly were a team working on behalf of the best interest of the community.
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