By MIKE FAHER
Somerset County commissioners issued a disaster declaration Sunday in the wake of flooding that closed roads, swamped basements and spurred evacuations.
By Sunday evening, floodwaters had receded throughout the area and evacuees had returned home.
And while Cambria County reported few water-related problems during the weekend, officials in certain areas of Somerset County still were dealing with emergency calls Sunday.
“We’ve been pumping basements all day,” Hollsopple fire Chief Dave Boyer said. “It’s been a busy day.”
Somerset County’s disaster declaration makes additional resources available for emergency response, said Joel Landis, a county 911 supervisor.
From Friday through 8 a.m. Sunday, the county received an average of 1.6 inches of rain, officials said.
With the Stonycreek River engorged by melting snow and rainfall, Hollsopple was one the county’s hardest-hit areas.
Boyer said the river reached 14 feet late Saturday night, though it had receded to 7.5 feet by Sunday afternoon.
About 24 homes were evacuated during the worst of the flooding, Boyer said.
“The majority of people spent the night with family or friends,” he said, adding that Hollsopple received assistance from other local fire companies and from Somerset County’s water-rescue team.
“I was just glad to see the public cooperate with our efforts,” Boyer said. “Everything we did was proactive.”
In addition to high water, emergency responders in Hollsopple also were closely monitoring debris floating in the Stonycreek. And there was concern about ice breaking free from Quemahoning Reservoir upstream.
“That would have given us some major problems,” Boyer said. “But we lucked out on that.”
Elsewhere in Somerset County, Rockwood Borough officials also issued a disaster declaration.
Mike Felesky, Rockwood’s first assistant fire chief, said the Casselman River “was too high for all the storm drains in town.”
That forced responders to set up pumps in various areas to manually send excess water into the Casselman.
“We were able to hold our own,” Felesky said.
In other flooding news around the area:
• Two personal-care homes in the Confluence area of Somerset County reopened Sunday after flooding concerns forced evacuations Saturday, county emergency officials said.
• PennDOT District 9 officials were reporting Sunday evening that some roads remained closed due to high water.
• Officials in Cambria County and in Johnstown reported no significant flooding issues.
• In Seward, a section of Route 56 reopened before lunchtime Sunday. High water from the Conemaugh River had closed the road Saturday.
Firefighters from Seward and Armagh had to rescue one Route 56 motorist who, in spite of warning signs posted nearby, ventured into the flooded area Saturday night.
“We got on scene and saw him standing on his roof,” said Travis Lovejoy, Seward Volunteer Fire Company chief.
Firefighters used an emergency vehicle to drive into the water and carry the man to safety, Lovejoy said.
