Flooding devastates Canton Governor shocked by damage, vows to seek aid for homeowners

Gov. John Baldacci said he was shocked by the devastation Friday as he viewed flood-ravaged areas by helicopter in western Maine before landing for a tour of the hard-hit town of Canton.

Several dozen homes were flooded, roads were washed out and the water level remained high as the governor visited.

Meanwhile, people in Piscataquis County breathed a sigh of relief as floodwaters from the Piscataquis River receded.

Baldacci met with Oxford County Emergency Management Agency Director Dan Schorr and other officials as well as some of the scores of people who were forced from their homes in the town.

One Canton resident wept as she hugged the governor.

“She said she lost everything in her house. She couldn’t even get the words out,” Baldacci said. “I just wanted her to know that she’s OK. The damage can be repaired … and we’ll work with her.”

In Canton, the largest single evacuation was at the Victorian Villa, a nursing home and residential care center for senior citizens on Pleasant Street. The evacuation of more than 100 residents was ordered Thursday as the water reached the curb and was still rising.

Those residents were allowed to return by Friday afternoon, but others were kept from returning to homes that were evacuated closer to the Androscoggin River, officials said.

In nearby Bethel, the town was nearly cut off by high water on Thursday and the Sunday River ski resort shut down for the day. The resort reopened on Friday, a spokeswoman said.

The flooding was caused by back-to-back weather systems that featured heavy snow followed by heavy rain. Ice jams along the Androscoggin River and tributaries contributed to the problems.

By Friday evening, the water level was dropping in Canton, but flood warnings were still posted on the Kennebec and Androscoggin rivers.

Tom Hawley, a hydrologist at the National Weather Service, said it was tough to predict when the flood threat would be diminished because there was no way to predict when the ice jams will break up.

Baldacci said Maine Emergency Management Agency officials will be on the scene through the weekend. They will be joined on Monday by an assessment team from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

Baldacci said he was confident the damage would reach the $1.4 million level required for a disaster declaration.

Piscataquis County officials were thankful to be spared from serious flooding.

“There were areas we really were concerned about yesterday,” Sheriff John Goggin said Friday. “I feel if it had not cooled off when it did, we would have had some serious flooding on the major arteries.”

With all the rainfall in recent days, the Piscataquis River reached the top of its banks and flooded some low-lying areas, such as the green bridge on the back Abbot Road.

Based on computer-generated information, the Piscataquis River at the covered bridge on Route 15 was expected to crest at 2 feet above flood level Thursday, but the river never reached that stage, according to Robert Wilson, Piscataquis County Emergency Management Agency director. Flood level is 11 feet.

“We came out very, very fortunate,” Wilson said. “Now my concern is next spring.” He noted there are now two ice jams in the river, one across from Foxcroft Academy and another in North Guilford. While these areas frequently jam in the spring, it is very unusual at this time of year. “Is that going to be bad? Who knows?” he said.

Other than a newspaper delivery driver who stranded her vehicle in water at about 4 a.m. on the back Abbot Road and had to get help from Guilford firefighters, most of the emergency calls related to the weather Thursday were for water-logged cellars and furnace problems.

Wilson said Greenville had about 50 inches of snow on the ground when the rain fell. The resulting melt caused flooded storm drains and culverts, he said. Greenville Town Manager John Simko estimated damage to public roads in his town at $13,000.

While there is no guarantee there will be state or federal funds offered as reimbursement for the storm damage, Wilson encouraged municipal officials and individual homeowners, who experienced furnace problems from flooding, to complete a Form 7 located in municipal offices. Should there be funds available, those applications will be considered.