The west end of Union County experienced severe flooding and damage following the storm Wednesday night through Thursday morning.
Mifflinburg Hose Company No. 1 Chief Steve Walter said firefighters were responding to emergency calls over two nights. The calls included transformer fires, downed trees, dozens of flooded basements and two cars stranded in roadways due to water.
“It was as bad as I’ve ever seen it, flooding-wise,” Walter said. “We’ve had worse flooding, but the small streams were way over their banks. There was more water than I’ve ever seen across (Route) 45 out of the fields. We’re still getting dispatched today (Thursday) to basements.”
The first car was on Chestnut Street just west of Forest Hill Road in Mifflinburg. The second was on Pleasant Grove Road at the intersection of Kaiser Run Road outside the borough, Walter said.
“The water wasn’t super deep, but somehow the water drowned out the motors,” Walter said. “They were incapacitated and couldn’t go. They were a road hazard at that point. There were no injuries.”
Union County West End Fire Company Chief Terry Smith said his department had similar calls of flooded basements and roads as well as a downed tree on Polly Pine Road.
“It was almost a repeat of what we had at the beginning of August,” Smith said. “It was worse. It was more water this time. It seemed the water levels were higher this time.”
The firefighters were out all through the night Wednesday into Thursday, only returning to the station to clean up around 9:30 a.m., he said.
Mifflinburg School District officials have closed school due to flooding in western Union County.
“Unfortunately, we are gonna have to close today,” the district announced on its Facebook page around 8 a.m. Thursday. “There are still about 10 or more roads that are closed due to flooding, and now we have a school without power.”
Chilly Willy’s, located at 118 Main St., Hartleton, had significant flooding in the August storm and this week. Rising water washed out dirt and moved the restaurant’s entire outdoor deck and seating area into the parking lot.
Kaleb Kerstetter, one of the managers, said the owner is trying to figure out the next step. The porch was pushed off to the side as much as possible without damaging it, he said.
Union County Emergency Management Agency Director Julie Erway reported that several roads throughout Union County were closed Wednesday at some point, including the following:
- Route 3004 (Creek Road) between Shirk Road and Route 3006 (Davis Road) in Hartley Township.
- Route 1003 (Hoffa Mill Road) between Route 192 (Buffalo Road) and Route 1002 (Col. John Kelly Drive) in Buffalo Township.
- Route 1001 (Johnson Mill Road) between Route 192 (Buffalo Road) and Route 2001 (Buffalo Run Road) in Buffalo Township.
- Route 2001 (Buffalo Run Road) between Route 192 (Buffalo Road) and Route 1001 (Johnson Mill Road) in Buffalo Township.
- Route 3003 (Millmont Road) between Lynn Street and Route 45 (Main Street) in Harleton in Limestone Township.
