PLUNKETTS CREEK TOWNSHIP -- A restaurant destroyed in last year's flood will be making a comeback in Lycoming County.
The rebirth of Pier 87 on the Loyalsock Creek is officially underway.
There's not a whole lot left of what was Pier 87, the bar and grill along the Loyalsock Creek north of Montoursville.
The flood hit the popular business hard in September, and it happened only months after new owners had done lots of work to improve it.
“To see it was heartbreaking, after all the work we put into it,” said Francesco Morrone, one of the owners of Pier 87.
Morrone has been tending to the garden that's still there, even though the business is gone. His partner, Brad Russell had his home hit by the flood in addition to Pier 87.
“I was with a couple guys who had to help me off the ground cause my knees went out from under me. I knew there was a lot worse things to see than just the business,” said Russell.
We're coming up on one year since that flood in September destroyed homes, uprooted lives and even blew the restaurant and bar along the creek to smithereens. Now the owners hope to have the place back to new within five months’ time.
There was a big crowd on hand to see Russell and Morrone, along with local officials, break ground for the new bar & grill.
Mickey Rundao managed the restaurant under previous owners.
“It means everything to know amongst tragedy you can still rebuild, think positive about everything,” said Rundao.
The new Pier 87 will be on pillars, eight feet off the ground, and hopefully high enough to withstand any floods.
“I don't think it's anything anyone in the area would have thought would have ever happened. Hopefully we’ll never see anything like this again,” said Russell.