Suburbs fared worse, but survived intact

The Shore was expected to take the biggest hit. But it just might have been the suburbs that suffered the worst from Irene.

Officials were still assessing the damage through the region, from Philadelphia's western suburbs to the New Jersey Shore.

But a quick glance shows the Pennsylvania and South Jersey suburbs took the brunt, even though officials in most towns say their preparations paid off.

Most of reports of rescues came from those areas. Calls for help, many unconfirmed as to their seriousness, came from Princeton and Salem in New Jersey, and Whitemarsh, Ottsville, New Hope, Hatboro, Tredyffrin, Chester and Levittown in Pennsylvania.

In Philadelphia, except for flooding along the Wissahickon and Schuylkill rivers, and some downed trees, appears to survived largely intact.

A swing through Mount Airy, Chestnut Hill, Conshohocken and Roxborough showed some damage, but not extensive.

Roads were generally clear.

And flooding and damage at the Jersey Shore did not appear to be as bad as many feared.

"It looks like we dodged a bullet," said Avalaon Mayor Martin Pagliughi. "It could have been a lot worse."

The storm spared much of Montgomery County, but as floodwaters rose in area rivers and creeks Sunday, Irene's aftermath threatened to bring the real risk.

Emergency responders rescued hundreds of people overnight from cars stuck on flooded roadways and homes in areas like Horsham and Whitemarsh, said Scott Mickalonis, deputy director of the county's emergency management office.

Boats from across the state were brought in for rescues across the area. And the by early Sunday, the need became apparent.

In Whitemarsh, National Guard troops worked to evacuate a neighborhood near the intersection of Stenton Avenue and Flourtown Road, where some residents reported climbing into their attics as floodwaters from the nearby Wissahickon Creek began seeping into the first floors of their home.

Firefighters were called out to recover a man clinging to a tree in Hatboro after he lost control of his car on a flooded two-lane road. The rescuers' boat took on six to seven inches of water after striking a submerged guard rail, but the firefighters retrieved the man unharmed, said Enterprise Fire Company Chief Keith Gordon.

Even a group of firefighters required rescuing when their boat capsized while responding to reports of a flooded car near Upper Moreland. Three responders were trapped in floodwaters for nearly two hours until they were rescued unharmed, Hatboro firefighters said.

River and creek levels were expected to rise throughout Sunday with the worst flooding expected along the Perkiomen Creek near Graterford and Wissahickon Creek near Whitemarsh.

The National Weather Service forecast the Perkiomen would crest at near 18.4 feet - a record, and more than seven feet above flood stage . The Schuylkill, where the service predicted the worst flooding was expected to rise to 22.5 feet near Norristown by Sunday evening.

Still, those areas away from waterways appeared to have dodged the worst, said Montgomery County spokesman John Corcoran. About 29,000 people were still dealing with power outages, while less than 300 people sought refuge in the county's three hurricane shelters, which shut down early Sunday morning. The King of Prussia Mall announced it would re-open at 11 a.m., as per normal business hours.

"It's not too bad out there," said Corcoran. "We have flooding in all the usual spots and power outages, but no significant injuries or damage."

In Bucks County, close to 60,000 residents had lost power.

Officials from the Bucks County Commissioners and Emergency Management Agency said Sunday afternoon that evacuations were ongoing in parts of Yardley and Lower Makefield. The Sherwood Meadows Apartments in Penndel were also being evaucated due to potential gas and sewage leaks.

New Hope is now doing a mandatory evacuation between the Delaware River and the Delaware Canal. Officials urged residents to call the New Hope emergency operations center at 215-862-2692 if they need shelter.

In Bucks, police and rescue workers were flooded with "person in water calls" through the night, but all were handled without incident, officials said.

"We've gotten calls all night from a bunch of people who don't heed warnings," a county police dispatcher said.

Penndel Fire Company Chief Tom Rimmer said he had gotten "a lot of routine calls - getting people out."

Flooding was reported along the Neshaminy Creek and Delaware River, prompting county commissioners to declare a state of emergency.

The county's declaration joined states of emergency already in place in individual Bucks municipalities, including Nockamixon, Lower Southampton, Northampton, Bridgeton, Warminster, Warwick, Wrightstown and Plumstead Townships, and Bristol and Perkasie Boroughs.

The Neshaminy Creek was expected to crest at about five to six feet over flood stage today, county spokesman Chris Edwards said, and some residential flooding was reported in areas including Yardley, Upper Makefield, Quakertown and Bristol.

"All in all, the response has been a lot better and more coordinated than the response to Hurricane Floyd was 12 years ago," Edwards said. "I haven't heard of anything catastrophic."

The Delaware River is expected to crest late Monday morning. In Washington Crossing, the river is expected to rise to 21.7 feet, just below the major flood stage of 22 feet. In the county's last major flood in 2006, Edwards said, the river crested at 22.5 feet there.

"It looks like the river will be close to major flooding levels in some places," Edwards said. Sections of River Road and low-lying communities such as Riegelsville, New Hope and Yardley are expected to take on water near the river.

Downed trees and other wind damage, "wasn't as bad as what we had expected, although there have been some road closures from downed trees," Edwards said.

No injuries were reported, but police rescued several people from flooded cars overnight.

Route 13 in Bristol was closed by flooding between Route 413 and Beaver Dam Road, Edwards said, and a number of roads around Silver Lake in Bristol were closed after the lake overran its banks.

In Delaware County, officials said there were no deaths and few major problems. So they lifted the state of emergency as of new, said William A. Lovejoy, county spokesman.

By mid morning, one Delaware County shelter in Chichester Middle School had already shut down after the eight residents who took advantage of the option left, said Lovejoy.

There was some reports of flooding in Tinicum Township when waters from the John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge crossed over roads in The Lester neighborhood, he said.

Between 4 p.m. Saturday and 8 a.m. Sunday, police in the county responded to 132 calls dispatched from the county's 911 emergency center for trees or wires down, Lovejoy said. Many more trees are down throughout the area, he said.

"We were not deluged with calls," Lovejoy said. "People hunkered down."

Most calls taken at the 911 center were for power outages. Tens of thousands of PECO customers in the county were without power yesterday.

The areas that did flood along the Darby Creek and Chester Creek are known trouble spots, he said.

At 11:30 p.m. on Saturday, a car full of teenagers drove into water on Rt. 291 near Palmer Street in Chester and stalled. A fire engine behind the car, removed the occupants and took them to the shelter, Lovejoy said.

"The road was never closed," he said. "There was just enough water for the car to go in and stall out."

He had no further details. The teens were not hurt.

About 8 members of the National Guard were onhand at the 911 center to assist with any rescues, he said.

"They have not had to go anywhere," Lovejoy said.

The Brandywine Creek was expected to crest today at 17 feet - about eight feet above flood stage, Lovejoy said. The Chester Creek is at 13 1/2 feet, flood stage is 8 feet. It peaked at 2:15 a.m. at 15 feet, 7 inches.

Lovejoy said he had received reports the flooded Darby Creek was already receding.

At mid-afternoon, Dewey Darley, a fire police volunteer with Tinicum Township, stood at the intersection of 5th Street and S. Governor Prinz blvd, directing drivers away from the flooded road ahead.

"I'm not tired," Darley, 62, of Essington said. "I'm retired and I am enjoying it."

The retired Army sergeant arrived around 10:30 a.m. on Sunday and set up his barriers about 10 white road stripes away from the water.

At 4 p.m., the water had crept three stripes closer to his post.

Some drivers, he said, would stop and ask to drive beyond the barriers so they can reach the airport or nearby hotels.

"People just want to get up there," he said.

Inquirer staff writers Amy Rosenberg, Diane Mastrull, Bill Reed and Larry King contributed to this report