FARMINGTON — Watching the ice jams along the Sandy River kept Franklin County Emergency Management Director Tim Hardy traveling from one potential problem to another Tuesday.
“Jammed as far as the eye can see,” he said of the view of the river south of the Fairbanks bridge.
When warmer temperatures and heavy rains cause snow to melt rapidly, a frozen river can swell
causing the ice layer on the top of the river to break — often into large
chunks. These can float downstream and pile up near narrow passages and
other obstructions such as bridges and dams.
Such was the case on Sandy River on Tuesday — a collection of large, jagged chunks of ice and toppled trees and
branches dotted the river.
The jams and heavy rain caused the river to overflow into an adjacent ball field. The cooling temperatures could relieve
the situation by slowing runoff and preventing more flooding, Hardy
said.
The area received 1.92 inches of rain from Sunday evening until early Tuesday morning, said weather observer and county Sheriff Dennis Pike.
A report of water over the road at Devil’s Elbow on Route 4 in Strong
started Hardy’s day at 2 a.m. Tuesday. He went back to check it
throughout the day.
Some residents on Echo Valley Road in Phillips were forced to wait for the water to recede before they could leave their homes Tuesday, Hardy said. No one was in danger, but Hardy was called to Phillips by Road Commissioner Stacy Reed when a significant ice jam on the river near Toothaker Pond Road and the Echo Valley Road caused flooding, he said. Reed thought there were four year-round residents living on the road but the water had already dropped considerably by midafternoon, he said.
An ice jam on the Sandy River at the corner of Whittier Road and the
Lucy Knowles Road was reported to have started moving down the river,
going under the Farmington Falls Bridge by midmorning. Flooding was also reported on the George Thomas Road near Tucker Brook Bridge in New Sharon.
Hardy also kept an eye on ice jams on Temple Stream at the site of Two Bridges, he said.
Although the river waters appeared to be receding by Tuesday afternoon, the ice jams could break up and start moving, or freeze right in, causing an overflow or flooding, Hardy said. If the weather stays above 30 degrees, it will help dry things out before temperatures are expected to drop this weekend, he added.
Ice jams clog Sandy River in this view from the Fairbanks
Bridge in Farmington on Tuesday. Several sites around the county were being monitored by Franklin County Emergency Management Agency.
Ice jams clog Sandy River in this view from the Fairbanks
Bridge in Farmington on Tuesday. Several sites around the county were
being monitored by Franklin County Emergency Management Agency.
Ice jams clog Sandy River in this view from the Fairbanks
Bridge in Farmington on Tuesday. Several sites around the county were
being monitored by Franklin County Emergency Management Agency.
Ice jams clog Sandy River in this view from the Fairbanks
Bridge in Farmington on Tuesday. Several sites around the county were
being monitored by Franklin County Emergency Management Agency.
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