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All This Rain Has Some Worrying About a Repeat of Last Year

SUSQUEHANNA COUNTY, Pa. — Last year was a record-setting year for wet weather in northeastern Pennsylvania, and 2019 is on pace to potentially be even wor...

SUSQUEHANNA COUNTY, Pa. -- Last year was a record-setting year for wet weather in northeastern Pennsylvania, and 2019 is on pace to potentially be even worse.

On May 13, 2018, we had already seen 15.25 inches of rain in our area, and we ended with 2018 as the wettest year on record.

As of May 13, 2019, the National Weather Service says we have seen 15.5 inches of rain, and with all that precipitation in the forecast, some people who saw flash flooding last year are concerned it could happen again.

After seeing rain 10 times in the last two weeks, concerns of flooding loom large in the minds of many from Susquehanna County.

Just nine months ago, heavy rain led to flooding of the Susquehanna River and smaller creeks throughout the county and left many businesses struggling to pick up the pieces.

Jennifer Lord works at the Dunkin Donuts in Hallstead and said the place had to close after the August flood.

"The last time we flooded we were down for a few weeks. We had to rebuild the walls and stuff and dry out everything and clean up all the mud that came rushing through," said Lord.

Businesses aren't the only ones concerned. It's homeowners, too.

"Everybody who has lived in this area who's lived here for the last say five to 10 years has experienced at least two floods--those hundred-year floods that they talk about--so everyone is very concerned about it," said Sandra Raub of New Milford.

According to officials with the National Weather Service, we have seen double the amount of rainfall in the last two weeks than we would normally see at this time of year. But despite the added precipitation, we're actually at a lesser chance for flooding.

"The rain we've seen hasn't come down fast. It's just been a steady rain. We've had very minor issues. The rivers are running high, but they're nowhere near flooding at this point," explained Dave Nicosia, warning and coordination meteorologist, NWS.

Nicosia is a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Binghamton, New York. He says although northeastern Pennsylvania has already seen a quarter inch more rain than this time last year, cooler temperatures have kept thunderstorms at bay, and that helps keep bodies of water from flash flooding.

"If we have thunderstorms this summer that move very slowly like we saw last summer, then certainly we can be concerned, but it's hard to predict this far out," Nicosia added.

There are no flood watches or warnings in effect at this point, but the National Weather Service does recommend if you live near a body of water to always be prepared for flooding, especially if it keeps raining.

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