WETHERSFIELD, Conn. — "At least we are safe," said Francis Rivera of Wethersfield. Tropical Storm Elsa showed her teeth even in inland Connecticut.
Hartford's Reserve Road was submerged under about a foot of standing water. On Brown Street in Hartford, storm drains bubbled over. A tree fell on the wires on Barnard Street while Hartford’s notoriously flooded Blue Hills neighborhood was relatively unscathed. "It’s turned out to be a little bit better than we expected. We were looking at a forecast of potentially up to five inches of rain," said Hartford Director of Public Works Michael Looney.
But the suburbs didn’t fare as well. On Jordan Lane and Goodwin Park Road in Wethersfield a tree fell on live wires in Frances Rivera’s yard, scorching the earth. "Was like a lot of fire. All the lines in front of the house there was fire and smoke," she said.
That was only the beginning of her trouble. "Maybe like two feet of water." She realized her basement was flooded and a furry friend was stranded. "One of my cats. He’s hiding now, he’s so scared."
Frances is originally from Puerto Rico. She said Elsa brought her home. "This all reminds me of when we have hurricanes over there."
A few houses down, the Fermin family had their pumps working overtime to bail out four feet of flood water. Sisters Caterin & Emelin Fermin said, "It happened once but it was less than that. It only reached the first staircase now it’s at the 4th."
Their laundry appliances, the furnace, a couch, and their beds were all submerged. They lost nearly everything they had. "I have a dresser. It’s small. That one flipped. My diploma was in there," said Emelin. Families had to band together to save what they can and worry about tomorrow, tomorrow.
The residents tell me their next step is a call to their insurance company and to photograph everything that was lost. The big concern as we go throughout the weekend is delayed River flooding. DPW officials tell me that they are concerned about runoff from upriver in Massachusetts overwhelming the Connecticut River banks here as we go through the weekend.
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