Flooded Marcellus homeowner: ‘It has never been this bad’

Andrea Giangiobbe stands in front of her flooded back yard with the creek raging behind her

The basement of Andrea Giangiobbe's Marcellus home flooded after heavy rains overnight. Anne Hayes | ahayes@syracuse.comAnne Hayes | ahayes@syracuse.com

Marcellus, N.Y. — Andrea Giangiobbe’s basement has flooded before, but in the 32 years she has lived in Marcellus, she has never seen anything the flooding that hit the village Thursday.

“It has never been this bad,” she said.

The basement of Giangiobbe’s home at 66 North St. was completely flooded Thursday following heavy rains overnight. The remnants of Tropical Storm Fred slammed Marcellus and Central New York causing creeks to overflow.

Giangiobbe, who lives next to Ninemile Creek with her family, said that the water at the deepest part of the flooded area was about 8 to 12 feet deep. It normally is no more than 2 to 5 feet deep.

The water was flooding in from the creek behind her house and across the lawns of her neighbors and the Creekwalk Apartments. Giangiobbe had never seen water flooding from both directions, which only compounded the issue.

The parking lot of the Creekwalk Apartments flooded and the water flowed into neighboring yards causing basements to flood.

The parking lot of the Creekwalk Apartments, 60 North St., Marcellus flooded and the water flowed into neighboring yards causing basements to flood.Anne Hayes | ahayes@syracuse.com

Marcellus firefighters worked to pump water out of Giangiobbe and her neighbors’ basements. Luckily, Giangiobbe and her husband were able to turn off the power to prevent an electrical fire, but they expect they will need to replace their furnace.

The village of Marcellus, where Giangiobbe lives, was hit hard by storms overnight. Marcellus park, less than a mile and a half from Giangiobbe’s home, was severely flooded.

Phil Coccia, head of the Marcellus parks and recreation department, said a homeowner near the park told him it was the worst flood he had seen in 45 years.

Coccia said there is no way to know the scope of the damage until the water recedes. The flood waters are already going down, and Coccia hopes to have the park completely reopened in about a day.

Marcellus was not the only area hit hard by the storms.

Water problems have been reported in Solvay, Liverpool, Cicero, Manlius, Skaneateles, Howlett Hill, Elbridge, Geddes, Minoa, Syracuse, Onondaga Hill, Mottville, Camillus, Otisco, Brewerton, North Syracuse, Lyncourt, Jordan, Lafayette, Pompey Hill, Taunton, Tully and Baldwinsville.

Many homes were reported to have flooded basements across the county, according to the Onondaga County 911 Center dispatches. The scope of the damage across CNY is still unclear.

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Staff writer Anne Hayes covers breaking news, crime and public safety. Have a tip, a story idea, a question or a comment? You can reach her at ahayes@syracuse.com.

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