Nearly 200,000 people in Pennsylvania were forced to evacuate their homes Wednesday, after officials worried that levees holding back the Susquehanna River here could fail because of sustained floodwater pressure and torrential rain. The evacuation triggered memories of past disasters -- Hurricane Katrina, certainly, but also Hurricane Agnes, which killed about 50 people and caused $2 billion worth of damage to this region in 1972.

There were reports across the Northeast of flooding, evacuations, deaths and dramatic rescues as the storm that pummeled the Washington area over the past several days took its fury north. Floodwaters tore open a chasm in Interstate 88 in New York, and two truckers were killed when they drove into it. Four people died in Pennsylvania.

Chocolate-colored water coursed around a wooded bend in the borough of Forty Fort. The Susquehanna, which had reached 34 feet, carried trees and branches, but to Max Giza everything was working as planned. "I worked on it, and it looks solid," the retired construction worker said. "I dont see any sponging," meaning the concrete wasnt collapsing. Giza, 57, was there when construction workers dropped metal panels girded with rebar and poured concrete to secure the levee. Giza took one last look at the river before police booted him off the levee. Cars raced down River Street as residents fled. Giza noted that even "rabbits are all over the place. Theyre bailing."

Luzerne County officials gave Wilkes-Barre area residents until 8 p.m. to evacuate, after watching the Susquehanna rise to the highest level that levees have ever held back. "We dont mess around here," said Kathy Bozinski, a Luzerne County spokeswoman. "We would rather have people get a good drill event than be sorry later on." The Susquehanna levees stand at 41 feet, she said. Officials said they expect the waters to crest between 35 and 37 feet. "We have been told that crest could persist for up to 48 hours, and that is a lot of water and a lot of pressure in the levees," Bozinski said. "After a prolonged time, there is always a window of opportunity for a problem." The Red Cross set up 10 evacuation centers in the area, but most residents are expected to find shelter with friends and family.

Carolyn Zaleppa, a retired public school teacher who lives a few blocks from the Susquehanna, moved her family photos to the second floor, packed a laundry basket with clothes and went to stay with her son, who lives outside the evacuation zone. All the time, she said, she was thinking of the 1972 flood, which left 36 inches of water in her first floor. "Its awful. Again," Zaleppa said. "Weve had close calls and it never happened, but Im afraid this time its really going to happen." Barbara Moran and her co-workers at Wilkes University spent Wednesday hauling computers and student files from their basement offices to the second floor. They didnt want to linger in the building, so only the most important papers were moved.

On the way home, Moran said, she had to bypass her normal route because several bridges that span the Susquehanna were closed. When she finally was able to cross the river, she was amazed at the water raging below. "I ve been over the river before when weve had these scares, and I thought it looked a lot higher than it has before," Moran said. "We re all concerned the dike is going to break. They really took that evacuation seriously. When we went into work, everything was fine, and then they said they were evacuating the whole city."

The National Weather Service reported flooding at several Pennsylvania rivers. The Schuylkill River in Philadelphia, which is considered flooded at 11 feet, passed the 16-foot mark Wednesday night. At Reading, which floods at 13 feet, the Schuylkill hit 24. The Susquehanna was predicted to reach 25 feet Thursday at Towanda, where the flood level is 16 feet. The Lackawanna River was predicted to touch its flood level of 13 feet by Thursday morning.

Forty Fort Mayor Boyd Hoats accompanied police as they kicked onlookers off the levee. "A lot of people left. A lot are heeding the warning," he said. Hoats, like many of the 4,500 residents, has expressed confidence in the levee, but they are anxiously eyeing the flood levels in the upper part of the river around Binghamton, N.Y. Beth Bantel checked into a hotel with her daughter, mother and a few cousins. They said they were prepared to spend their day in the pool. "I brought my bathing suit. I thought we might as well have a good time," she said.
(Por Michelle García e Shankar Vedantam, Washington Post, 28/06/2006)