Flash Flood in Tioga County, New York

Tropical moisture streamed northward into south central New York ahead of a frontal system which slowly moved westward into the eastern Great Lakes by Tuesday morning the 27th. This tropical moisture brought heavy showers and thunderstorms across much of upstate New York Sunday through Tuesday morning. Rainfall by Tuesday morning totaled 1 to 2 inches in Tioga County. This initial rainfall saturated the soils before another round of heavier rain moved into the county Tuesday afternoon as the front moved back east and combined with a low pressure system moving up the eastern seaboard. This scenario spelled disaster for Tioga County. Total rainfall for the three day period ending Wednesday was up to 6 inches. This heavy rain sent nearly all streams and creeks over their banks in what was described as the worst flash flooding this county has ever seen. Flash flooding began in Owego at 310 pm EDT Tuesday the 27th with some businesses downtown taking on water. By early evening, flash flooding was affecting the Waverly area and soon became widespread Tuesday night especially in the Campville area as another 1 to 3 inches of rain fell. Numerous roads, bridges, businesses and homes were flooded. A total of 5000 homes were affected with 500 homes damaged and 10 destroyed. Hardest hit areas were Tioga, Campville, Owego, Nichols, Barton, and Apalachin. Total damage in Tioga County is estimated at around 100 million dollars. No one was killed. A state of emergency was declared for Tioga county Tuesday evening.