Middleburgh preps for potential flooding

SCHOHARIE COUNTY, N.Y. (NEWS10) — Everything might look white and tranquil across our area Tuesday into Wednesday night, however, heavy rains could affect bodies of water across Schoharie County, washing the winter scenery away and creating flood conditions.

A covered bridge sits over the troubled waters of the Schoharie Creek. Village of Middleburgh Mayor Timothy Knight says the creek coupled with his village’s geography makes them vulnerable to flooding.

“We kind of sit at the bottom of a big bowl, a lot of water coming off the hills and down the Creek,” said Knight.

“If the Schoharie Creek reaches a certain amount of C.F.S. [cubic feet per second] — or amount of water — that's coming down, The Middleburgh Fire Department will pretty much put a Central Command together, and they'll start monitoring an hourly flow to see whether or not they're going to need to have any kind of response" the Mayor added.

While Middleburgh got 3 to 4 inches of snow, Mayor Knight says it's the surrounding areas that cause concern.

“We’re looking more with what's going on down in Hunter, Tannersville, Prattsville because that's where the significant snow packs accumulate, and as they saw it as the rain comes through and wash them into the Schoharie Creek that's what comes down the valley towards us" Knight explained.

The mayor tells me that history is against the town of 12,000 people.

“Probably every decade we probably get a significant weather event. We had Hurricane Irene back in 2011. The last winter storm before that was 1996, and that usually happens as a result of heavy snowpack, which always melts, or heavy rainfall, or we get tropical storms and bring a lot of water up the coast" said the Mayor.