This is so sad. I read that the water is full of toxins and germs. How awful.

Initially 100,000 people were told to evacuate from NY, PA and MD. They were worried that the river would crest as high as during Hurricane Agnes which would overflow the levees in Wilkes Barre, PA.

My son went to Bucknell University in Lewisburg, PA which is along the Susquehanna and it flooded once while he was there. It was wonderful to hear him tell how the college students went into town to help people carry their belongings.

Yes, Polly, this is so sad...devastating. Those poor people, their houses, & yes, at the zoo, those poor animals! I saw on ABC news about the 2 bison who had to be euthanized. Tragic. Hope people's pets have made it through okay.

DH used to work in both Wilkes Barre & Scranton (commuting from Bethlehem, PA) & did some consulting work in Hershey, so we are familiar with the area. The 13 years we lived in the Lehigh Valley, I never heard of a flooding incident of this magnitude.

The water from flooding is just getting overwhelming here. I thought we had alot of flooding from Irene, but this past week, DD's college was closed down for 2 days, requested all resident students stay in their dorms, not attempt to drive, etc. That flood water was the leftover rain from tropical storm Lee which just stalled out over Delaware, Bucks, Montogmery and Berks Counties in PA. Added worry.

I do hope that those who are out in Wilkes Barre, Darby Boro, as well as all other hard hit areas can get back on their feet quickly. I can tell you first hand that it is a draining process to try to put your home and life back in order after major flooding.

The other day I received a pre-recorded call from FEMA, advising that all homeowners who sustained flooding damage are qualified to apply for assistance. Having already purchased flood insurance, I don't need to take advantage of that particular help, but glad it is available for those who don't carry flood insurance or whose homeowner's policies won't cover their claims. I know that homeowners' insurance doesn't cover damage from flood waters, and coverage for hurricane damage comes with a huge deductible. Unless you opt for a lower deductible and pay much more $$ for the change, you may be looking at a $5,000 hurricane deductible. The State mandates that homeowners' insurers can set forth a percentage (I think 2%) of the insured home value, as the hurricane deductible. Unbelievable.

Work- 10 homes in my town were condemned, and 1600 with major damage. Just heard at my daughters soccer game some people opted for higher deductibles because they weren't in a high risk flood zone, they could be shelling out 5% value of their homes. Average value for a home in my town is $500,000!
FEMA has set up a station at our community center, and they held a meeting the other night, but it was chaos. They were not expecting 1000+ people to show up. But the community has been extraordinary with donations, volunteers, and fundraising for those displaced. The general feeling here is - we will rebuild, we are just so thankful for no loss of life.
One of my former coworkers moved out to the Wilkes Barre area, she is stuck at her house and unable to show up for work. She is at a high elevation, so her home is safe, but there is no way to get out.
I heard on the news my area of NJ has averaged 21 more inches of precipitation for the year. That's close to 2 feet. Unbelievable.

polly - wow 1,600 with major damage and 10 condemned. The sad part is that those whose homes are condemned will most likely not see a reimbursement for the total value of their homes. No, I am sure that FEMA was not expecting so many to turn out. FEMA made automated telephone calls to all our our telephone numbers, home and cells, about where to call for the help available, as the entire state has been declared a disaster. Did they believe people wouldn't turn out, especially those who don't carry flood insurance coverage?

On another note, apparently FEMA claims it is low on $$. That tidbit makes me crazy as every year for over 20 years, we have paid out of pocket to carry unrequired flood insurance. It wasn't required by my mortgage lender. But living close to a creek that flows into the Delaware, we figured it would be better to be safe rather than sorry. So, FEMA has collected a tidy sum from us over these many years, and yet we've never made a claim before now.

We have an acquaintance, "Joe", who also lives on the same water source, about a mile as the crow flies, from where we live. His home continually floods from noreasters, remnants of hurricanes, and locally heavy rains. The township will not allow him to raise his home. We have been assigned to work with the same adjusting company (you don't get to choose who you work with). I hope our situation goes better than I am anticipating. To keep my sanity, I have set my expectations low, if I am pleasantly surprised, at least I will not be disappointed.

In speaking with "Joe" the other day, DH remarked that his wish is that his home would either completely float away or burn down. Can you imagine? At least that way he would not have to be continally inconvenienced, and deal with making flood claims only to wait to see whether FEMA will cover the cost of repair his home each time. It is exhausting both mentally and physically when your home is flooded. You are usually displaced for some period of time, only to return to a home that needs major repair.

Fortunately, our damage was confined to our crawlspace, but everything that runs the home is located in that space. We are still in chaos as prepping for Irene, we moved everything we could to our second floor. Now, everything needs to be put back, including all business records that we relocated to a safe location as a precaution in anticipation of Irene.

No loss of life is one of the most important things. Things/possessions can be replaced.

WIP - I wonder why the township won't let him raise his house. That's awful. I was visiting my jeweler in Yardley, PA during the summer and drove along River Road heading toward New Hope and saw how the houses there had been raised. Some looked pretty good, others looked rather odd but since that area has been flooded so often in recent years it makes sense to raise them.

I also have Flood Insurance and I'm nowhere near a flood zone or a stream. However it seems silly to pay thousands of dollars to insure my home and not pay the additional couple of hundred to get flood insurance. We also have sump pump insurance.

It is just awful all the way around it seems around the country. Several in our immediate community lost their homes in the wild fire last weekend. It is not a good feeling when you get the phone call to prepare to evacuate. We were lucky as the wind was not toward us as we were less than a couple of miles from that fire. We did evacuate but felt confident we'd be ok when driving away. Friends of the family lost their homes in another wildfire in my in-laws community. We had just gotten word of that as we were there when our neighbors called us about the fire near our home. We just ran to our truck and sped home and loaded up.

Then there is the huge fire in Bastrop that is also not far from us. Been praying so much for friends and their families in that area. I'm dreading going to work on Monday and driving through there. I worked from homeall last week since the Hwy was closed and I didn't want to be in the way potentially by taken the other shortest route around Bastrop since I have the ability to work from home and I didn't want to add another hour to our already long commute even though my daughter kept asking to see her friends. Not so easy to understand when you are two.

A few co-workers lost their homes in the Austin fires as well and my husbands co-worker lost the house they were closing on in two weeks in the Magnolia fire. It has just been a horrible week I think all around.

lyfia - is your home okay? When our first flood occurred it was sudden and we were evacuated without notice, so we just packed up the pets & their food along with overnite bags for DH & I. Fifteen minutes notice isn't a great feeling, putting it mildly. However, we had a nice place to stay, as my MIL has a big home and we were welcomed warmly.

Our second evacuation was a bit slower in coming. We were able to move things to the 2nd floor. That was a bonus, but putting it all back now is not so fun, but we didn't have anything of import get wet. I am in the process of re-organizing and going store some things like all of our photos taken over the years, on the 2nd floor. No sense in having to move them again should the need arise. Eerily, there was just a post on this thread a short while back about "what would you take with you?".

Very sad situation in Texas right now.

I hope your home is okay, and please stay safe!

Our home is just fine. Sorry I wasn't more clear on that. So many around the area stretching from Houston to West of Austin is not though, and it is really heartbreaking to know people that were affected by all these different fires. I know the most mentioned one is the Bastrop fire, but there were so many others too.

So many homes in our community have been condemned also. On Monday, when the inspector came through the Twin Orchards subdivision, he condemned 4 of the first 6 houses he came to. It's been just awful.

Don't even get me started on flood insurance. Even for those people who paid for structural and contents, the insurance won't be covering all their damages. After the deductible it'll pay for structural damage and the contents of the above ground areas, but not basements. The only contents covered in basements are things like washers, dryers & freezers.

Nothing porous can be saved because the floodwaters are so toxic. Wood furniture has to be tossed, and people are parting with their grandma's sewing cabinet or grandpa's gun safe. It's been absolutely heartbreaking.

The local Petco left over 100 animals to die, even when employees wanted to take the animals home with them. Corporate told them not to, and when the floodwaters receded, they came back to a store full of dead animals. Corporate at first blamed the local government for not warning them ahead of time, which was hogwash, then blamed failed municipal pumps, before finally placing the blame on the "new employees." Can you tell I'm pissed? It makes me so angry.

"The local Petco left over 100 animals to die, even when employees wanted to take the animals home with them. ...."

OMG THAT MAKES ME MAD! I mean, what is WRONG with people!?The employees actually listened? I'd be fired.

I would have been fired too. My mom fostered a little dog during the hurricane when the shelter had to be evacuated. How can they get away with that?

I think I am going to boycott Petco now.

It is really sad. Lax, same in my town, street after street of water logged family heirlooms, it's so heartbreaking.

They did move about 100 animals to another store, but they left about 100, too. While it was a shock how high the water got this time, it wasn't a surprise. We had seen similar flooding in 2006 and our local municipalities were on the ball. They had had flood watches and warnings all day, with the drum beat for evacuation getting louder and more dire as the day wore on. Everyone knew that evacuations were necessary by nightfall. I know that I won't be shopping at Petco anymore. It just makes me so mad.

DS1 and I have been down in some of the worst hit areas helping drag out stuff to the curb, and it's just so heartbreaking. Today is the first day that I haven't been out volunteering, but I just needed a break. I know that's horribly selfish, because for many there is no break, but I needed it just the same.