PRESQUE ISLE, Maine — Flooding closed roads in Presque Isle and Fort Fairfield on Tuesday, after city and town officials said heavy rain combined with melted snow to make roads unsafe for travel.
The city of Presque Isle closed off Henderson Road and surrounding areas around 7:30 a.m on Tuesday, according to Presque Isle Deputy Director of Public Works Chris Perkins. Around the same time, the Fort Fairfield Police Department announced that the town had closed off a section of Currier Road.
By Wednesday, Fort Fairfield Police Chief Shawn Newell said Fort Fairfield’s public works department had reopened Currier Road after making repairs to the side of the road. At 12:30 p.m. on Wednesday, the Presque Isle Highway Department said sections of Henderson Road remain closed off.
A piece of ice floats down the Presque Isle Stream at Riverside Park on Wednesday as Canada geese swim by. The stream swelled with snowmelt and ice movement, though waters appeared to have receded somewhat since Tuesday. (Paula Brewer | Star-Herald)
Perkins said it was not uncommon for Henderson Road to flood and that it happens every two or three years. With water he estimated ran about 150 feet on the road, and six-to-eight inches deep, he said the city would keep the road closed until tomorrow morning, if not longer.
“All the rain and melted snow is more than the pipes can keep up with,” Perkins said.
Because of flooding issues in the past, he said the city had added culvert pipes to the area, though the water was overwhelming them in this case. Now, time must be taken for the road to drain and become drivable again.
Perkins said that there did not appear to be any damage to the road, though there was no way to tell for sure until after the water recedes.
With sunny weather up ahead, he was optimistic he wouldn’t need to deal with any more flooding in Presque Isle.
“This year’s been pretty minor,” Perkins said. “I’ve seen years where we’ve had four or five roads closed.”
The Presque Isle Stream flows onto land on lower Chapman Street on April 15. (Paula Brewer | Star-Herald)
In Fort Fairfield, Newell said a stream near Currier Road typically floods annually due to heavy snow melts. Like Henderson Road, he said Tuesday’s closure came from a mix of Monday night’s heavy rain and melted snow.
He said the town would cordon off parts of the road until the flooding ends, with town officials re-opening it for traffic when it is again safe to drive on.
Newell said he was optimistic that additional flooding would not be in Fort Fairfield’s future for the time being. He said it had been a relatively light flooding season for the town other than what he described as “minor” flooding on Caribou Road.
“Overall, there was a lot less pumping at the pump house — and a lot less flooding — than we have had in the past,” Newell said.
