Montgomery County hit hard by rain

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Heavy rain caused flooding and even some evacuations in Montgomery County Wednesday, and the county remains in a state of emergency until at least 8 p.m. today, officials said.

"It appears the town of Florida was impacted the most," said Rick Sager, deputy director of Emergency Management in Montgomery County. "There were road closures, washouts, culvert washouts and multiple cellar pump-outs."

Sager said Amsterdam and Charleston also were hard hit by the rain. He said the county will remain in a state of emergency until officials can "get a handle" on what transpired.

In Amsterdam, several families were evacuated from their homes on the banks of the South Chuctanunda Creek on Florida Avenue Wednesday night.

"A couple of houses sustained damage during a flash flood," said Amsterdam Fire Department

Battalion Chief Richard Depasquale. "Water poured into the houses, and they basically self-evacuated."

National Grid turned off power to the homes, and there were no injuries reported, Depasquale said.

"This hasn't happened in a long time," he said. "I've been here 20 years, and this is the first time it happened."

Several roads in Amsterdam were closed Wednesday, including Florida Avenue and Forest Avenue. A portion of Route 5S near Langley Road in the town of Florida was closed temporarily. A portion of McKinley Road in Palatine Bridge remained closed this morning. State police closed all lanes on the Thruway between Exit 26 and Exit 27 at Amsterdam from around 5:30 p.m. until almost 8:30 p.m. Wednesday. Westbound traffic was diverted off the Thruway at Exit 26, while eastbound travelers had to leave the highway at Exit 27.

Fulton County experienced little in the way of flooding, said Superintendent of Highways and Facilities Mark Yost.

"We had a few [trees blow down], and we're out making repairs right now," he said. "There were a few minor shoulder wash-outs, but there were no major culvert or flooding issues. We're in good shape."

Officials in Hamilton County reported similar findings.

"We were very fortunate," said Hamilton County Undersheriff Karl Abrams. "We had the heavy rain but no winds. The storm stayed just south of us."

Fulton and Montgomery counties had approximately 2.5 inches of rain fall throughout the day and night Wednesday, though some isolated areas got as many as 4 inches, officials at the National Weather Service in Albany said. Rain is expected to continue today, but will not be as heavy as Wednesday, and should taper off by Friday. Weather service officials said most of the flood watches are now in effect for areas of Vermont and the Berkshires.