I imagine the D-L (DL&W) Portland yard is under water.... Portland residents, businesses fear the worst ALISON O'BRIEN and DAVID KIDWELL Pocono Record Writers June 29, 2006 PORTLAND — Dale Long could only wait and watch as flood waters crept towards his store, Long Ago Antiques, in Portland Wednesday night. Long had just reopened the antique shop two and half months ago after the last flood in April 2005 forced him to close his doors for a year. "I just went through a year of cleaning up "¦ drying it out, pulling up rugs, floors and tiles," he said. Long said his biggest concern is the drain that runs under the road and his shop to the river. If the water level rises far enough, Long said, it will bubble up through the vents and into his store. Whether or not the water will reach that level will be known this morning when the river crests. Long says he does not plan to give up. "I'll probably stay open, it'll be another long haul," he said. "I just wish that the water would stop where it is." Dave Weidman, who owns two businesses on Route 611, was giving them the once-over Wednesday evening. "The basement has water in it already and we're just hoping it doesn't come up to the first floor," he said. "People on the lower end of town suffer the brunt of flooding and you feel very bad for them." Sherma Godshalk, president of the council for the town of Portland and longtime resident, said preparations began on Tuesday and into Wednesday morning as sandbags were placed over the drains as a preventative measure. She is also saddened by the effects of the flooding. "It's really sad, it breaks my heart to see this happen again," she said. "It's a wonderful town with wonderful stores." Godshalk added, however, if there was one positive aspect of the situation it would be the helpfulness each of the store owners and residents has shown to one another. "It's wonderful to see how people worked together," she said. Portland's mayor, Kay Bucci, said the town has been in a state of emergency since 10:31 a.m. Wednesday. "It's tough because the town was just starting to come back so nicely," she said. Shepherd's General Store had their grand opening two weeks ago and the Portland Market re-opened on Jan. 8 of this year. Bucci can also only wait to see just how high the waters will go. "We're saying our prayers," Bucci said. - --------------------------------- Yahoo! Music Unlimited - Access over 1 million songs.Try it free. The Erie Lackawanna Mailing List Sponsored by the ELH&TS http://www.elhts.org ------------------------------
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