Rensselaer Semi-Weekly Republican, Volume 35, Number 150, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 22 January 1904 — A Tremenduous Rainfall. [ARTICLE]

A Tremenduous Rainfall.

The big rainfall of the past two days' along with the large amount of water already on the ground in the form of snow and ice, have given Rensselaer another season of high water, unequa'led since the historic wet spell in June and July 1902. The total rainfall, from Tuesday night until early this Thursday morning was 2.53 inches. And that is the large t rainfall in one continuous storm since July 7th, 8111, andT9fE7 1202, when it was 2 70 inches. The result of so much rain has been to flood the eastern and northern parts of town, about as they were flooded by the big rain ab mentioned. Numerous cellars have from one to three or four feet of water, and in some cases door yards and outbuilings are flooded, and water- lacked but a fe * inches of getting into houses, Makemself sewer, a new improvement constructed at a cost of ov» r 110,000 has not carried off the water any better than the former open ditch. The cans -of the failure may have been that it is rot of sufficient capacity, though much of its length it is of 3 foot sewer pipe, and with a large fall; but the more probable cause seemed to be that the outlet end in the river was blocked with ice.

Among those who have had their ce lars flooded, are Henry Amsler. G. H. Maines, R. A. Parkison, John Poole, B F Ferguson, Nelson Randle, L Strong, A. J. Abbott, and many others . The water came up the Harrison street sewer into the bottom of the boiler house of the court house heating plant about 9 or 10-inches, but not enough to put out the fires. The ice began moving out of the river in the night, but a good deal more moved down in the forenoon, and a gorge had formed at the creamery bridge within a few inches of the bridge floor, and making higher water for some distance above than for years, but it moved out about 10 o'clock ' The river is still very high however, though not nearly up to the high water mark of July 1902, at the Washington street bridge. There has been considerable danger of the water backing into the pump and engine room of the light and power plant, and it is higher than the door sills, but it has been dammed out so that the danger is probably obviated.