Floodwaters recede but more rain in forecast

Floodwaters in southern Maine receded during a weekend letup in the region’s incessant rain, even as the prospect of more wet weather in some areas raised concerns about the prospect of renewed flooding.

Northern and eastern Maine were not as hard hit by recent rainstorms, according to the National Weather Service in Caribou.

“We got a break today,” Rich Norton, a meteorological intern, said Sunday afternoon. “There are some scattered showers starting to pop up in the Bangor area.”

Rain and scattered showers are predicted for most of the week but it is not expected to be heavy, he said. Accumulations each day were expected to be between one-tenth and one-third of an inch of precipitation.

Skies were expected to clear Friday and, if the current conditions continue, the weekend is expected to be free of rain for the first time this month.

Work crews in Cumberland County took advantage of the break in the weather over the weekend to begin repairs to washed out roads in the southern part of the state.

In Freeport, one of the hardest-hit towns, officials lifted a boil water order put in place after a break in a 12-inch water main and said everyone was back in service. But it could take up to a month to repair Desert Road, part of which collapsed atop the broken main.

Meanwhile, with more rain possible Sunday night and into Monday, the National Weather Service posted a flash flood warning for Franklin and Oxford counties where thunderstorms were expected.

Southern Maine, however, may dodge the drenching rains that had been predicted earlier.

A shift in the computer models indicated that the system packing heavy rain may be shifting further to the west and the south, according to Andrew Pohl, a meteorologist at the weather service office in Gray.

“It’s been slowly evolving,” Pohl said. “We may actually get a break.”

The ground across much of Maine remained saturated from this month’s prolonged rain, but Pohl said it would likely take about 2 to 3 inches over a couple of hours to cause additional flooding.

In Lebanon, washed-out culverts opened a huge gap in Kennebec Road. But Bob Bohlman, director of the York County Emergency Management Agency said he doesn’t expect damage in the county to reach the $230,000 threshold that would trigger a request for a federal disaster designation and open the door to low-interest loans and grants to help with repairs.

BDN reporter Judy Harrison and The Associated Press

contributed to this story.