Schuylkill River Flooding Reaches Historic Levels In Norristown

NORRISTOWN, PA — The impacts of Tropical Storm Isaias continued to be felt long after the brunt of the storm had passed, as flood waters rose to dangerous heights around the region.

The Schuylkill River was no exception, soaring to 20.55 feet in the midst of the storm, according to data from the National Weather Service.

That marks the fifth highest crest of the river in recorded history, NWS data shows. Waters have not risen that high since May 2014, when they hit 20.84 feet. The all time record is 25.10 feet in June 1972.

"Flood stage" is considered to be 13 feet. The Schuylkill was more than seven feet over that at its crest on Tuesday, within the highest NWS bracket for "major flooding," which is anything over 19 feet.

The waters swept through many riverside homes and inundated floodprone areas. It also swept away trash, lawn furniture, and even vehicles.

A flood warning remains in effect for Norristown through Thursday morning. The river's crest was at 13.1 feet in Norristown as of Thursday morning.

The Norristown area received the brunt of the Schuylkill's flooding, though Pottstown also flooded at 15.16 feet, and Philadelphia reached 13.28. Water rose several feet onto Main Street in Manayunk, and covered multiple stretches of Kelly Drive heading towards Center City.

In Philadelphia, high waters also whipped a barge loose and sent it crashing under the Vine Street Expressway Bridge, where it remained Wednesday morning, leading to road closures and a shut down of SEPTA's regional rail.

The storm left hundreds of thousands without power, closed numerous roads throughout the region, and brought down trees and electrical wires. Two tornadoes touched down in the Philadelphia area, one in Bucks County, and one in Montgomery County, the NWS said.

In Norristown, flooding shut down the DeKalb Street bridge into Bridgeport and numerous other roads. A huge sinkhole was created at the SEPTA station:

In Bucks County, high winds ripped the roof off of a building at Doylestown Hospital, while the storm's destruction forced animals to be moved from their exhibits at Elmwood Park Zoo.

More than 126,000 customers remained without power Wednesday morning.