Monongahela police officer rescued from flooded road
Celeste Van Kirk/Observer-Reporter
West Chestnut Street was closed by flooding at Franklin Farms Road in Washington early Thursday.
Violet Azman's backyard and the yards of her neighbors were underwater Thursday on Weirich Avenue in Canton Township.
Violet Azman stands beside her flooded backyard Thursday on Weirich Avenue in Canton Township.
Celeste Van Kirk/Observer-Reporter
Courtesy of Karen Sprowls
Rain causes Pigeon Creek to flood Carlton Drive in Somerset Township earlier this year.
A Monongahela police officer was rescued unharmed from his police cruiser after it became trapped by floodwater along a street in Union Township early Thursday.
The cruiser likely was destroyed after rising water trapped the officer on the roof of the vehicle about 6 a.m. at Courtney Hill and Patterson roads, a Washington County 911 supervisor said. The identity of the police officer who was rescued by firefighters in boats was not immediately known. Monongahela Mayor Bob Kepics declined to comment on the rescue.
The National Weather Service in Pittsburgh had issued a flood warning across the region that morning and into the afternoon, including for Washington and Greene counties, due to heavy rainfall. Nearly an inch of rain fell overnight, and an additional inch was predicted through the afternoon, the service said. Rainstorms were expected to continue until Sunday.
The 911 supervisor said flood-prone roadways were closed Thursday morning across Washington County, including Route 40 at Franklin Farms Road in North Franklin Township. He also said flooded basements were being reported to dispatchers.
Observer-Reporter
West Chestnut Street was closed at the intersection with Franklin Farms Road on the border of Canton and North Franklin townships after heavy rain caused flooding in February 2018.
Route 837 was closed Thursday morning in the Black Diamond section of Monongahela because a clogged sewer sent floodwaters onto the road and a Norfolk Southern rail line, the city said.
The rain had mostly ended by 2 p.m. Thursday in the Pittsburgh region, but a new line of storms was expected to move in early Friday and pick up again at daybreak, said Mike Kennedy, a meteorologist at the weather service.
Kennedy said as much as 4 inches of additional rain said could fall by Sunday, causing the Monongahela and Ohio rivers to spill their banks.
“The streams are up pretty good and moving, and the ground is saturated,” Kennedy said Thursday.
He said a flood watch would remain in place as small-stream flooding was expected to occur again Friday morning.
Celeste Van Kirk/Observer-Reporter
Observer-Reporter
The backyards of homes along Weirich Avenue in Canton Township backyard were flooded in this file photo from 2018.
He said a persistent flow of storms was moving into the region from the Southwest.
The Monongahela River is expected to crest at 29 feet in Charleroi by 7 p.m. Sunday, a foot above flood stage. That could result in minor damage. Kennedy said that prediction could change depending on the rainfall.
Kennedy said models predict that Pittsburgh’s three rivers will crest between 1 foot and 4 feet above flood stage Sunday. The worst-case scenario would cause Heinz Field in Pittsburgh to take on water, he said.