Youngsville takes a direct hit

Tumbling trees and water team up for disaster

By FRITZ MAYER

YOUNGSVILLE, NY — The rain- soaked ground gave up many trees on the hill on Shandalee Road in the early morning hours of Wednesday, June 28. Some of them fell into the swollen rushing waters of Panther Rock Creek. They were carried swiftly downstream, becoming lodged at the bridge across Route 52. It was not long before the water backed up behind the tree and debris jams and spilled out onto Main Street. It was the second time in three days that debris had jammed the bridge, but this time the damage was worse. The neighboring bridge over the Callicoon Creek, just a few hundred feet away, was also jammed with tree limbs and debris.

Many basements were flooded and thick mud was deposited on the floors of buildings near the bridges. The raging water tossed about the new and used cars on the lot of the Youngsville Garage like toy boats in a bathtub.

Linda and Joe Babicz, who own Youngsville Custom Kitchens, live in a house that sits just at the confluence of the two creeks. As the water rushed through their property that night, it submerged their cars, knocked down part of a rock wall, cleared away the earth from the foundation of their main building and slammed up against their front door.

As the water was rushing at the building in the predawn hours, they managed to get a sheet of plywood and a couple of sheets of wallboard against the exterior of the front door. That stopped some of the water from getting into the house, but there was still a lot coming in. They rolled up a carpet, jammed it against the inside of the front door, and stood on it until the rushing water subsided.

Later in the day, when the cleanup was underway, Linda said one room on the first floor was covered with mud, but she believed their efforts prevented the water and mud from spreading through the rest of the first floor.

Babicz and her group, the Youngsville Environmental Preservation Committee, have been pressing local and state lawmakers for three years to clean out the creek beds. Babicz believes that even though this was an extremely large flood, the damage caused would have been lessened if the creek beds had been cleaned out, because, she said, “There isn’t enough between the bridge and the creek bed,” and that’s where debris becomes trapped and the water backs up.

Residents along Callicoon Creek, which also runs past Jeffersonville, Hortonville and Callicoon, have experienced extensive flooding through the years, including incidents in September 2004 and April 2005.

In May, at the behest of Congressman Maurice Hinchey, the house passed legislation that provided $250,000 for a study of the Callicoon Creek watershed. The senate has not yet voted on the bill, but passage seems likely. The goal of the study would be to identify ways to minimize flooding damages while preserving the natural environment.

While the floodwaters were still flowing over Route 52 on Wednesday, members of the Youngsville Fire Department went to work with dozens of volunteers throughout the community, who donated time and heavy equipment, to clear away the vast piles of debris that had temporarily choked off their town from the rest of the county.