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Flood waters in Binghamton "worst I've seen"

Johnson City resident Carol Olts says there's nothing left to do but watch the flood waters rise - and hope for the best.
Matt Richmond
/
WSKG
Johnson City resident Carol Olts says there's nothing left to do but watch the flood waters rise - and hope for the best.

As the Susquehanna River slowly crested today, residents of Broome County could do little more than stand and watch the water rise.

Carol Olts, 60, sat in a lawn chair, just down the street from her house, staring as the river climbed up the hill toward her, little by little.  She didn't expect there will be much in her house to save once the water finally recedes.

"Our neighbor went in there last night night and he said we probably have six or seven feet on the first floor," Olts says.

Olts has lived in the Binghamton area her whole life. There's been flooding before, but she says this is the worst she's seen.

Governor Andrew Cuomo did a helicopter survey of Broome County Thursday morning and said the worst may not be over yet.

"The Susquehanna is going to get higher, the Chenango is going to get higher so this should be taken seriously," the governor warned.

According to the county's emergency services department, the final flood level is expected to be 37 feet in Vestal, and about 27 feet in Binghamton.

Cuomo, who spent much of last week touring the flood damage from Hurricane Irene, says he plans to ask the federal government for emergency assistance.

WSKG/Southern Tier reporter for the Innovation Trail.
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