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Flash flooding sweeps into the Pittsburgh area and spurs numerous water rescues

The intersection at Dewey and Martha Streets in Etna, Pa. near Pittsburgh, closed after high water rolled over a creek Thursday night in a flash flood. Pittsburgh Post-Gazette via AP

PITTSBURGH — Flash flooding caused by relentless heavy rains that soaked western Pennsylvania spurred numerous rescues and evacuations in the region, but no injuries were reported.

The National Weather Service said nearly 3 inches of rain fell in a short time late Thursday afternoon and evening in parts of Allegheny County. The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported that some southern sections of the county got more than 4 inches as they got stuck under heavier bands within the storm system.

Rescue crews in the Pittsburgh suburb of Oakdale used watercraft to evacuate or rescue some residents, while officials in nearby Etna issued an emergency evacuation notice as Pine Creek breeched its banks at over 14 feet.

The weather service issued a flood warning for the Ohio River, which was forecast to crest in the Pittsburgh area at above 25 feet late Friday into Saturday — well into flood stage. The river was at nearly 22 feet late Friday morning, a rapid rise from about 16.5 feet on Thursday morning, before the heavy rains moved into the region.

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