WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. — People living in the Vallamont Hills section of Williamsport are all too familiar with Grafius Run. The stream that runs underneath the city and into the West Branch of the Susquehanna River has been a nuisance for decades.
"Grafius Run has been a huge problem for many, many, many years. It overflows and just floods basements and homes from Elmira Street to all the way south down into the downtown portion of the city," said Mayor Derek Slaughter.
Grafius Run has caused some of the worst floods in Williamsport's history. To help combat this, the city installed solar-powered sensors in the stream to notify its public works department when water levels rise.
"We have three different thresholds with this equipment," said Scott Livermore, director of public works. "Eight inches, twelve inches, and twenty-four inches is what I have in right now. As the water hits eight inches, I will get a notification via email, text, and a call to look at the cameras, see what's going on, and find out if it is a debris problem."
If debris is causing water levels to rise, the city can now respond quicker to remove the blockage and prevent serious flooding.
"There is history of this thing coming up and over in just 45 seconds, and that has been the biggest part," Livermore added. "We haven't had enough time to get out here. We have four different sensors set up. There is one upstream that once that water level hits up there, that will give me an early indication that something might happen downstream."
Neighbors Newswatch 16 spoke to did voice their frustrations with the flooding but agreed that the sensors are a step in the right direction. The city is working on solutions to fix the problem permanently.
"You know, the first step is these sensors that we have installed, and we are also looking at automated trash racks. It is no longer that we are kicking this can down the road. We will address it head-on and look for solutions to give homeowners some relief," said Slaughter.
The city says the sensors and the installment cost just more than $150,000.