Flash Flood — Piscataquis, Maine

2023-07-16 · near Monson Jct, Piscataquis, Maine

Event narrative

The likely failure of a beaver dam led to flash flooding on a small portion of Route 16. The road was closed for several hours until the flooding subsided. The road was also damaged.

Wider weather episode

An influx of tropical moisture helped support the development of heavy rain during the 16th. Antecedent wet conditions already existed due to several recent heavy rain events across Piscataquis county...along with an overall wet July. The suspected failure of a beaver dam led to flash flooding along a small portion of Route 16. The likely failure of the beaver dam led to the rapid release of water impounded behind the dam. The surge of released water led to the flash flooding. The flash flooding led to closure of the road until the waters subsided. The flooding did also cause some damage to the road.

View location on OpenStreetMap → (45.1768, -69.5525)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1120800. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.