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Businesses impacted by dangerous conditions on the Farmington River

A wet July has made for less than ideal conditions for summer businesses along the river.

CANTON, Conn. — A very rainy July has made the Farmington River too dangerous for people to go in.

"It’s raging and flowing very quickly and really really high," said Vicki Rees of New Hartford.

"People should not be in there. It’s dangerous, it’s kind of murky," said Kristen Oswald of Canton.

That means businesses that depend on the river and nice weather, are having a tough time.

"This has been a very slow, sad year so far. So far, we’ve been open all of three days in the month of July," said Jeremy Harraden, manager and vice president of Farmington River Tubing in New Hartford.

He said this summer has been a battle with mother nature.

"Last month there was no water in the river it was too dry so you know it was getting to the point of having to restrict the hours," Harraden said. "Now it’s too much water in the river and we can’t even open," he said.

The river is getting closer to safer levels but it’s not quite there yet.

"A thousand cubic feet per second, it has to get below that before we can open," Harraden said. "This most recent storm crested the river about 8,000 cubic feet per second coming by here and we’re down to 2,500 right now," he said.

Collinsville Canoe and Kayak are also waiting for conditions to improve so rentals can pick back up.

"It’s something we’ve been through before but not something we enjoy," said Sue Warner, president of Collinsville Canoe and Kayak. "July and August are our two key months for those programs so it is frustrating," she said.

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They’re looking on the bright side though, there is still plenty of summer left.

"We’re hoping to have the best August we’ve ever had that’s what we’re looking forward to," Warner said.

Both businesses are ready to welcome people back as soon as possible.

"As soon as we get a good water level and a nice day we’ll be open for business," Harraden said.

People are encouraged to call ahead before going to Farmington River Tubing and Collinsville Canoe and Kayak to get an update on conditions and whether or not they are open. Both are hoping to be able to reopen this weekend.

Gaby Molina is a reporter and anchor at FOX61 News. She can be reached at mmolina@fox61.com. Follow her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

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