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The Hometown Newspaper of Hi Clinton, Essex, Franklin Counties Vol.103 - No. 63 Copyright 1995, Proas-Republican Plottsburgh, NY 12901, Monday, October 23,1995 Suggested Price: 50 c 28 Pages ly SAUL G. FERRER Staff Writer KEENE - Motorists face frustrating delays for up to three weeks because flash floods tore away a 200-foot section of the Route 73 Saturday night. The road .was closed im- mediately. * Torrential rains also damaged sections of Route 86, the alter- nate' highway around Wilm- ington, causing further traffic complications. \I've never seen a rainfall like that do so much damage so quickly,\ said state Department of Transportation Dispatcher. Dave Bender. \The downpour undermined (Route 86) and took that section of the road with it.\ Chris Darden, a spokesman for the National Weather Service in Burlington, Vt., said Saturday's storm was caused by tropical moisture from the south, and was unrelated to Tropical Storm Roxanne. The majority of the storm's strength came from the Atlantic-Ocean. \It was almost like a winter- time or 'early springtime storm. We usually don't see storms of this intensity this time of year,\ Darden said. Another storm front is due to hit the region Tuesday, but it will not be near the intensity of Saturday's; storm, he said. State Eplice- reported Satur- lSh and fire officials responded to the disaster. ' *\ \A small side brook overflood- ed with the heavy rains,\ said Keene Fire Department Chief Brad Jaques. \The road collapsed where the brook\ weakened the structure. Police and DOT workers closed the road and rerouted traffic. Sunday travelers were detoured to Route 86 between Lake Placid and Wilmington, adding an Addi- tional 10 miles to their journey. The route was originally closed because of the damage and a propane gas leak caused by a mudslide at the Whiteface Moun- tain ski area, former site of the 1980 Olympic downhill skiing competition. A county-wide state of emergency was declared Satur- day. The gas tanks were secured, but the emergency was still in ef- fect as of 2 p.m. Sunday because of roadway damage, according to State Police. \Route 86, by Ski Center Road, lost part of one lane and a shoulder,\ said state DOT Assis- tant Engineer Harry Hopkinson. Flagmen will be on hand around-the-clock to redirect traf- fic. Ray Brook State Police said Route 86 is open to two-way traf- fic as of Sunday night, but cau- tioned drivers about the re- maining damage. No accidents or. injuries associated with the storm were regort'ea 1 as of Sfiii : ' day night. , . Continued Pag* 3 may be closed for weeks • • • v _* . Staff Photo/Robin Caudell HarryHopkinson, assistant resident engineer for the New York State Department of Transportation Essex Coun- ty (left) and Bill Curan, DOT construction engineer evaulate the Route 73 section, which collapsed four feet after a stream undermined the road near the Twin Bridges in the Cascade Lake region. The road is closed. Repairs begin today. Mudslide carves new scar on Whiteface By MARY THILL Staff Writer Soro-Placld Bureau WILMINGTON - Four inches of unrelenting rain Saturday afternoon tore a mud and rock path down the side of Whiteface Mountain, causing extensive damage at the base. Olympic Authority staff were evacuated from the mountain about 6 p.m. when rain gouged several trails from about midway up the mountain, taking trees, boulders and trucks with it. Route 86 by the mountain was closed to traffic Saturday night because two propane storage tanks were torn from the base lodge and an unknown amount of the gas leaked out. The propane supplier secured the tank that night, according to Whiteface Manager Ted Blazer. The area was closed off because propane vapors are ex- tremely flammable. But it dissipates rapidly, and the leak did not cause any harm. Mini-streams created by the overflow of rain also collapsed the road to the ski center and caused some minor mudslides and shoulder damage to Route 86. Four feet of mud piled against the back of Whiteface's base lodge. The first floor of the lodge was coverd by several inches of mud Sunday morning, but there was no structural damage. Three Olympic Authority vehicles were wholly or partially buried in mud and rocks. A van owned by Whiteface's food vendor, Service America, was caught by the rubble as workers tried to evacuate. They left the van in the debris and departed on foot. No one was in- jured. On Sunday, the cleanup began. Muddy water still rushed down the Boreen trail, which resembled a boulder-strewn river bed. Several trails near a stream were eroded from above midsta- tion to the base lodge, Manager Ted Blazer said. A cloudburst in 1971 caused similar landslides on the other side of the mountain, blocking the highway that climbs to the Staff Photo/Mary Thill Propane tanks rest on the ground after being torn from their standing posi- tions by flood waters. top and carving out one of Whiteface's trademark scars. Heavy-equipment operators from ORDA and around the region worked to divert the runoff so the mountain can be regraded for skiing. Electricity was also knocked out. But ski lifts, the midstation lodge and snowmaking equipment were un- touched, Blazer said. \We will be open and ready for skiing on Thanksgiving,\ said Raymond Pratt, director of the Olympic Regional Development Authority, the quasi-state agency that runs Whiteface. Congressman Jerry Solomon, R-Queensbury, and Secretary of State Alexander \Sandy\ Treadwell toured the damage Sunday afternoon. \They offered assurances of support,\ Blazer said. However, until insurance adjusters estimate the financial impact of the damage, there is little that government officials can offer. Blazer, too, was positive. Snowmaking should begin as scheduled on or around Nov. 12. \This is just one of those little things that happen,\ he said. An Olympic Regional Development Authority van rests In a bed of boulders, mud and debris, which slid down the Boreen Trail when Stag Brook Jumped its banks due _ ' ^ . «,„ T ^ ~ •* • r» i |.*..v»r*inf.ii.nwhi.ei.o.M.»,....ns, tari .y.v. B . Swollen Ausable forces Keene families from homes .Ju- WEATHER Mostly sunny with a milder after- noon. Highs in the mid-60s. South winds at 10 mph. INDEX Business News 7 Ann Landers 12 Classified...., ..19-28 Features .....6 Comfcs^. 12 Public Record ..£10 Editorial.:..... 4 Sports. .16-? Entertdlhrnent 11 Weather 13 Horoscope.... A 12 Lott.ry: 258. *Plek 4't 6055. 10:3, \6, 17,27,28,31,33,34,38.43,45,47,52,5B,59,61,64,67,73,74. By SAUL G. FERRER and MARY THILL Staff WIIIMS KEENE — Eileen Gilmore panicked when she saw flood waters barrelling towards her home Saturday. \I heard a tremendous roar and went outside. I looked and there it was, this wall of water coming toward us, logs in it and all. Ausable River just came out of its banks.\ She rah inside, closed the door, and with her husband Allen, prepared for the worst. \We shut the power off and managed to get some of the fur- niture and rugs up and pile them to save some of our belongings. We didn't have a lot of time. It just came so fast.\ The Gilmores were among sev- eral residents evacuated from their homes along flooded Route 73 in Keene. \Six homes were evacuated for high waters threatening them,\ said Keene Fire Department Chief Brad Jaques. Several homes were damaged as a result of the flood, a product of Saturday night's sudden tor- rential downpour in the region. \It was pretty scary. There were practically whole trees be- ing carried along with the flood,\ Gilmore said. \It was a very swift current.\ Town of Keene Supervisor Bob Purdy called to ask the Gilmores if they wanted to be evacuated and initially, they refused. \We said we'd stick it out and, at first, we did. Later, he called and told us it would be best if we evacuated and he was right. We were totally surrounded, there was no way out. We were rescued just as the water started coming in to the house.\ Keene firefighters used a front-end loader and a Keene Valley four-wheel drive truck to rescue the Gilmores and the other residents, Jaques said. \It was extremely high water, but we managed,\ he added. The Gilmores returned home Sunday to find walls, molding and furniture damaged. \There was about a foot of water that came into the house. Fortunately, we do have flood in- surance.\ Inspectors will visit the site today to assess the damage, she said. Keene neighbors told the Gilmores this was the fastest, most severe flood in recent histo- ry. \We flooded once before in 1991 when there was an ice jam, but nothing like this. I hope I don't have to go through this again, ever,\ she said. Nearby, eight members of the Meldrim family from Cortland accidentally discovered Upper Jay Saturday night. They were coming from a wed- ding in Vermont and were trying to reach cabins they had reserved in Ray Brook. They were stopped by State Police and told Route 73 was washed out, so they stopped and ate at Monty's Elm Tree Inn in Keene. Their waitress made a reser- vation for them to stay at another lodging but they were unable to reach it because roads were also blocked in that direc- tion, Tom Meldrim said. \We went all over, driving in circles,\ said Helen Meldrim. They wound up in Upper Jay at the Brookside Inn. The tiny community is usually hit hard by spring flooding on the Ausable River. Although the river swelled over the banks, there was little property damage there Saturday night. ,,$,-.
