PORTLAND, Conn. — As towns in the Naugatuck River Valley continue their week of flood cleanup, the Connecticut River Valley community of Portland has been cleaning up since April.
But now there’s renewed hope for the residents of Jobs Pond. Jobs Pond is a unique body of water that was created by a glacier and is fed by underground springs, runoffs and culverts. But there’s nowhere for the water to exit and it has been mysteriously rising since about February.
Now, the levels are receding, just in time for a pumping project to begin. Back at the water's edge of Jobs Pond, energy is low.
“We’re tired. We’re tired,” said resident Ellen Mantel.
But spirits are high.
“We're thankful that the homes are still standing,” she added.
The docks are floating again, and kids are playing at the nearby YMCA Camp Ingersoll. All this, as Jobs Pond residents make a triumphant return to their homes.
“This past week we just came back,” said resident Tom McGinty, who spent months evacuated as a rising tide enveloped his pond side property.
He showed us the basement where the water level line was visible on the railing of his stairs.
“The washer and dryer during the flood were literally floating around the basement,” said McGinty.
Next door, Ellen Mantel showed us the basement of her multi-generational home. Unlike Tom, she never left.
“We had fish in here,” said Mantel as she described the basement. “I kid you not. We had fish and pollywogs.”
Now that the feet of water are out of most of these basements, the concern turns to secondary problems like mold, mildew and inches of muck.
But a fix is just days away.
“We're pretty optimistic. We are in a good place now,” remarked Portland First Selectman Ryan Curley.
Curley says a massive pump will keep lowering the water level. Permits were procured to pipe that pumped water across private property and the nearby Air Line Trail, where it will be tied into a culvert that empties into the Connecticut River. It’s a temporary solution.
“Funds are available to explore an option that would be a permanent fix for this,” added Curley.
In the meantime, Jobs Pond residents are happy to enter a new chapter.
“We know it’s going to take a long time to get that permanent solution resolved,” said Mantel.
In the cycle of a pond that brings both beauty and burden, “Now it’s just time to go and get this done,” said McGinty.
U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal [D] will likely be at Jobs Pond Monday to observe the progress that’s been made, as 75% of the funding for this nearly $1-million project is coming from the federal government.
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Matt Caron is a reporter at FOX61 News. He can be reached at mcaron@fox61.com. Follow him on Facebook, X and Instagram.
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