Downed line, rain plague Brewer residents

BREWER – A downed power line that diverted motorists on North Main Street on Sunday morning also created headaches for residents attempting to pump water from their flooded basements.

According to Lt. Dennis Tinkham of the Brewer Fire Department, an insulator connecting lines atop a utility pole blew, sending a live electrical wire to the ground at 10:30 a.m. The wire caught fire and melted the pavement near the Airline Pharmacy.

“We had some pretty good flames shooting out of the wire,” Tinkham said. “Multiple chunks of the road were deformed.”

Tinkham couldn’t estimate a monetary damage figure.

About 900 customers who live near the line lost power immediately, according to Bangor Hydro-Electric Co. spokeswoman Jen Brooker.

In order to replace the downed wire, however, the company shut down electricity to a larger portion of the city. A total of 1,400 customers were without power at the peak of the outage. Power was restored at 1:30 p.m.

Small-vehicle traffic was diverted onto Chapman Street. Because of limited road space, tractor-trailer drivers waited until crews cleared the roadway at 11:43 a.m.

No one was injured.

After responding to the downed line, Tinkham’s fire crew was called to Silk and Jefferson streets when eight callers complained of rising water levels in their basements. Without electricity, water pumps used by the residents were inoperable.

“Today, the problems were compounded by a power loss, so pumps couldn’t keep up with the need,” Tinkham said.

Firefighters used generators and gas-powered pumps to clear most of the water from the basements by the time power was restored.

Homeowners saw up to 8 inches of water, according to Tinkham. He said a combination of the power outage, heavy rainfall and high tides, which prevented proper drainage of storm water back into the river, exacerbated the problem.

Area residents have reported similar flooding in the past. According to Tinkham, the terrain is elevated and sloping, but valve problems in storm drains have plagued the neighborhood. He said the Fire Department responded to a homeowner who had 4 feet of water in his basement on Oct. 9, 2005.

Joe Guerin, 68, a Silk Street resident, lost $1,200 worth of laundry and furnace equipment in that same rainstorm last fall when 6 inches of water flooded his home. His basement has flooded twice in the 17 years he has lived there.

On the second time around, Guerin said water levels rose to nearly 12 inches on Sunday. He said this incident was especially frustrating because of the power outage.

“My pumps didn’t do much good,” he said. “I hope no damage was done this time.”

Guerin said the city has installed new storm valves that didn’t alleviate the problem.

“After this, hopefully they’re going to get it fixed once and for all,” he said.

A flood watch was issued for Washington and Hancock counties early Saturday morning, according to meteorologist Derrick Weitlich of the National Weather Service in Caribou. It was lifted at 2 p.m. Sunday.

Orono received some of the heaviest totals statewide with 3 inches of rain.

Forecasters expected rain to taper off Sunday night.