The view from a legislator

MONTICELLO, NY — Lawmaker Elwin “Woody” Wood, who represents the district that includes Roscoe, said the mood in the picturesque hamlet is pretty “grim.” He says there’s a sense of flashback, because some residents are still rebuilding from the flood that swamped Roscoe and much of the rest of the region on June 28, 2006.

The impact of the rushing water was more intense this time, and more costly in terms of human lives. In terms of property value, the numbers are still out. The damage from this flood will certainly reach into the millions of dollars, but region wide, it will likely be far less than last year’s June flood because it was limited in size.

Wood said the flood hit with such swiftness on the night of June 19, that rescue vehicles could not be used in the hardest hit areas. He said firefighters and other rescue workers walked up to two miles into the flooded area to bring people out. He said 20 to 30 residents were rescued that way.

The flooding of the Beaverkill brought a lot of municipal entities together because, while the road and 200 or so homes in the affected area are located in the Town of Colchester in Delaware County, the locations are contained in the Roscoe-Rockland Fire District and the Roscoe Central School District, both based in Sullivan County.

Wood said the cooperation between the county agencies, fire and rescue departments and other groups was very good. He said, “You’ll often find that in a rural community. When a disaster happens, everyone comes together.”