Devastation in Central PA (Bloomsburg)

Link to info about Susquehanna NPP . Link

wiki link

Now for some links from the NRC about events at Susquehanna.

June 8th Event

Retracted event on July 25th

Reactor SCRAM on Aug 22nd event
Scroll down a bit for it.

More information from other sources.

Susquehanna 2010 Freon leak event

PPL (utility) wiki

PPL owns Susquehanna.
It's licence just got a 20 year extension to operate the plant like 2 years ago I think.

Oh and look at this silly thing::

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission's estimate of the risk each year of an earthquake intense enough to cause core damage to the reactor at Susquehanna was 1 in 76,923, according to an NRC study published in August 2010.

And then this year, not a whole year later the Virginia quake forced a SCRAM. I guess they overestimated the odds a bit.

Steam leak back in January

Maybe they should decommission this old junker?

I can't find anything about the flooding. I'll keep looking.

If I find anything I'll try to update this post, if it's too late I'll just make another post.

Hmm...look at this link.
elp.com

It says the flooding didn't really cause any impact. And they are 'operating normally'. It also discusses the other power plants owned or operated by PPL.

So if a new leak occurred, they are covering it up. Or didn't know about it yet since the article is from the 12th.

I would rather live in a nuclear holocaust than to live in philly.

reply to post by youthsavior


Seriously this is ridiculous! I live 10 miles upstream of the Susquehanna Nuclear Power Plant and a half mile away from the river itself. Yes, the river crested almost 2 feet above the record set during hurricane agnes in 1972. Yes, many towns from Tunkannock,PA to Selinsgrove, PA saw flooding. Yes, Bloomsburg was probably one of the worst hit towns during this flood. But can the fear mongering stop? The power plant is a good 50-75 feet above the river. The plant did not flood and did not leak ALL of its waste into it. I will agree the the river is one of the most polluted rivers in the COUNTRY not the world, due mainly to sewage and mine (coal mines) run off. The nuke plant isnt leaking any radioactive waste into the river. Thousands of people lost there homes and this crap is talked about. How about lending a hand or a donation instead of fear mongering!

reply to post by PacificBlue


Oh and I went through areas after the evacuation and through National Guard blocks and didnt get shot. The National Guard helped out tremendously with the entire evacuation and flood. Do you people forget that when the National Guard is deployed in local areas they are all your local neighbors for the most part. They are deployed to help! I know enough guardsmen to know if they were told to start taking us down they wouldnt listen.

Maybe if we had a Republican President we would have heard about these disasters. Not that I'm a big fan of Republicans or Democrats, but seems to me that when we have a Republican President, this stuff gets coverage, especially pointing out his mismanagement of the situation. I've been wondering myself as to what's happening out there. I haven't heard a thing! I watch and read the news, but somehow these stories escaped me. When Katrina happened, there was no end to the coverage for several months after.

reply to post by youthsavior


Didn't know about the nuclear leakage from the Berwick Nuclear power plant.. But in all truth there is already far worse things in our ground water from run-off in the coal mines.Heck the Jedo which runs by where I am at is a sulfur creek(so I drink bottled water bleh). And part of the flooding problem had to due with the new levees built in Wilksbarre that sent a larger percentage of water down river then it would have in past floodings.

Then you have the idiots who ignored historical data on flooding from the 70's and what not, and built houses in places prone to flooding. Personally any type of flood pay-out(insurance or aid) should require the home be demolished and turned into permanent woodland.

That said, everyone is doing an awesome job helping each other out. From the Pennsylvania National Guard(Pennsylvania's is the best!) to Church's and just neighbors working together. I suppose local fund raising will become a fixture for a year or so but that is a good thing. People working together to build a stronger community.

reply to post by youthsavior


sorry these good folks are in dire straits. if you know of organizations / addresses / phone #'s where ATS peeps can get info & send contributions to help, please post.

i'm in the upper corner of NJ, not far from PA and NY state borders. TV news here: for the most part, if it doesn't happen in the five boroughs of NYC it is usually ignored. it's as if the rest of the world doesn't exist. it's as if there are some people in Brooklyn that think we're still doing cowboys & Indians across the bridge & tunnel.

and new news quickly replaces old. people are busy and have short memories it seems. there are many areas up and down the coast that will be under repair for a very long time to come thanks to that bitch Irene.

thanks for the post. please, if you have info, let us know what we can send and where to send it to help you all out. folks in PA are good people and i'm sure there are many neighbors willing to help. thank you

My parents live 10 miles away and were telling me about it, but I hadn't seen anything on the news. They said it was bad.

Sorry to anyone who feels offended by my post (raceway) for example. I'm not fear mongering. I'm trying to inform people of whats happened / happening and am trying to get people to help and spread the word to, uhh,.. get more help. I'm not even bashing the national guard! All because I said they weren't letting some people leave doesn't mean I'm against them! They're not letting them leave because the flooding is so bad they have no roads to drive on! If anything i'm grateful for the NG! They're helping tremendously.

And about the Plant, how are you so sure?

Seems to be a devastating event. Not to put this town above any other that was was devastated though.

As for the leak from the nuclear plant. I've found no evidence that there is a leak. On the contrary, I've found articles saying that the storms and flooding did not have too much of an effect on PPL's plant.

Now of course you can say "Oh this is MSM it's being covered up." Sure. Or you can fumble through a few
sources that are claimed, and are merely hearsay, no proof to back up any of those claims.

Obviously a leak from the plant would be awful...although I'm not sure it would really make the water there too much worse.

Originally posted by summer5
You would think with all the coverage that THIS would have got some attention on national news

Why would ALL of this information be withheld??

I am angry and saddened by this.

All I keep thinking is - WHY?

Of course they cover up the nuclear incident

I don't think we know half of what is really going on!

You are so right we don't know! the talking heads on TV do not report the news, they read the news that is given them on a Teleprompter. Reporting a nuclear leak would be a no no in those circles. Remember the Three Mile Island fiasco?

My thoughts and prayers out out for ALL affected by the flooding, and I am with Ron Paul on FEMA too, why count on a Federal agency that has shown clearly their ways and mean, when the money should have stayed in the State coffers for just such an emergency. This is why the States need their National Guards back from the combat zones, and shouldn't the Army and Marines be doing that job anyway?

Hey guys let's not get to conspiratorial regarding the flood. Yes it was significant in terms of size and scope and to some people here, sure, total devastation. I wasn't directly impacted as I live on higher ground but I live in Wilkes Barre, PA and it was here in this area where everyone was holding their breathes. Granted Bloom got hit bad, but they always do and yes the entire city was pretty much under water. In WB we had our fingers crossed that the levees would hold. There were some cracks in the levee in Forty Fort and it was also seeping fro underneath but Army Corp fixed that up. The National Guard here were terrific and needed. You will always have people who are out to take advantage of a situation and since there were evacuation orders for everyone in the 1972 flood area. If you want to know the impact of the flood research the 72 flood, only the 72 flood was worse because the flood gates in WB weren't built until after. Thankfully they held. The town of Shickshinny was also completely flooded and that is the town between W-B and the Nuclear Power Plant. The power plant is located on a hill across from the Susquahanna River. That said, Route 11 is between the river and the power plant and no flooding took place on Rt11 where the power plant is and we received no wind damage, so I think its safe to assume the power plant is ok. If not, i'm in trouble as I drive past there every day. This is my first reply to any post at ATS although I come here every day. I felt the need to clarify some things here. 1.) No power plant damage. 2.) the National Guard were gentleman and no reports (that I heard) to the contrary. 3.) It was a nasty disaster and we are still recovering. 4.) Hundreds of homes wiped out and destroyed. 4.) FEMA IS WORTHLESS. THEY ARE A JOKE AND ARE MAKING LOCALS VERY VERY ANGRY. A colleague of mine had her house flooded to the 2nd floor for over 4 DAYS!! After it receded the 1st floor was gutted, appliances (furnace, etc) thrown out per city order so they can come pick them up. FEMA says to her, "There's no sign of flooding here" There was still a wall up in the basement so they took FEMA to that wall: "See the water damage?" FEMA: "Ok, so it may have ruined your furnace, so where is it?" "How am i supposed to know it was ruined by the flood?"
That is one of many stories like it. They are doing nothing but adding insult to injury. Peoples homes and livelihoods have been destroyed and they come in with no empathy or care. They balk at having to pay anything. They have contractors that go out of there way not to tell people they can by generators and FEMA will reimburse so that way everyone missed the deadline to get them.
The real horror of this experience is FEMA and only FEMA.

reply to post by masta12d


I'm in W-B too, this flood was crazy for surrounding areas.... It was a complete miracle we didn't get hit, 1.3 ft and it just would have destroyed us, esp for me since I'm right next to the river.......

Yeah FEMA is a joke and no one needed them, I worked in west pittston for clean up and there was plenty of people pulling together to help each other, the flood was terrible but was refreshing to see everyone workingtogether..... FEMA= useless.....

Originally posted by ABNARTY
reply to post by youthsavior

 

If it does not happen in SOCAL or the 1-95 corridor, it does not matter.

Half the Midwest could wash away down the Mississippi and it would barely register a blip on the MSM. Have a three and half acre fire near Malibu and it's wall to wall coverage.

Unfortunately, you're so right. I live in Pasadena, CA and in November of 2002, we had sewage come up into our house from everything that had a drain opening. There were only seven (7) homes affected including my house and we/I was on CNN....it got national coverage and I couldn't believe it and to top that off, the story ran for days on CNN and weeks on the local news.

We were displaced for over 9 months while our homes were gutted and restored. And get this, I was told by the City of Pasadena Health Department 3 days later that it was okay to go inside my house to retrieve items that had not been damaged. I ended up with a kidney infection as a result of the bacteria that was floating in the air. My son who was four at the time showed signs of Hepatitis as he was in the bathroom when this event occured and came in contact with the sewage that came up through the sink. I sued the city as did other residents, but they gave up by settling for pennies. I eventually settled as well, but not until the City of Pasadena (who always portrays itself as a perfect community although we have rocket fuel amongst other things found only in the water around here from all the years of JPL/NASA screwing around with science) acknowledged publicly what they caused by not maintaining the sewer pipes and misinforming me about the potential health hazards that lurked inside my house. The city did pay and restored our homes back to their orginal conditions. Unfortunately, I didn't trust their work and after having my walls tested for mold and mildew which was positive, I sold my house and moved on. This incident cost my family thousands of dollars and it could have been prevented.

I think it is sad when people have lost everything they worked so very hard for and there's no news out so that others who are willing to help can do so. My daughter attends Temple University in Philadelphia, and said she hasn't heard anything on the news about the Nuclear waste and very little about the town of Bloomburg and the damage there. Of course, she doesn't have much time to watch T.V.. My daughter maybe able to gather some students to go up and assit you all in some way....I'm sure you need all the help you can get.

The reason in my opinion that So Cal always gets so much attention is because the properties in certain cities including my city, are worth so much money. The dollar value of a story is what gets the MSM's attention instead of the loss of life or property damage

BTW, to anyone here who has been affected, if there's anything that I can do to help you and your families out, please U2U me and I will get the word out to my local non-profit organizations so we can get you some assistance. Please don't wait around on FEMA as we all know they're full of $^!#. If you haven't already done so contact your local American Redcross, 4-H Clubs etc..

I wish you all the best of luck and don't forget, there are those of us that if we know we help.

Keep your heads up and thank you YouthSavior for getting the word out

Originally posted by ThePublicEnemyNo1

Originally posted by ABNARTY
reply to post by youthsavior

 

BTW, to anyone here who has been affected, if there's anything that I can do to help you and your families out, please U2U me and I will get the word out to my local non-profit organizations so we can get you some assistance. Please don't wait around on FEMA as we all know they're full of $^!#. if you haven't already done so contact your local American Redcross, 4-H Clubs etc..

edit on 9/21/11 by ThePublicEnemyNo1 because: spelling

There has been an overwhelming outpour of help from local communities. Pretty much anyone who wasn't affected lifted a hand for those who were. We aren't unfamiliar with flooding in this area but I think those who need the most help are the ones whose homes will be condemned. It will take time to recover from that, especially when you have insurance companies and federal assistance working as it always does. Most hotels are booked or too expensive and some people need extended stay, how do they afford that? Not from the wages they get in this depressed area.

reply to post by masta12d


BTW FEMA has advised they will not be sending there famous trailers.

Thank you everyone for your contributions. I'm happy to see people sharing their experiences and stories, and am happy and hoping that the NPP will be ok. I didn't realize FEMA was so worthless.....

Glad to see this thread. I thought of starting one on my own but everytime I tried I just got too emotional about it and I just didn't think I would produce anything coherent....

I just returned from spending a week in the area helping my mom recover. I am from the Lycoming County area, not mentioned in this post. There is much mention about the Susquehanna but what some may not realize is that in this area the creek systems are pretty extensive and they post as much if not more of a threat to many of the residents. My mother lost her entire first floor and her neighbor about 30 yards away lost their whole house due to creek flooding.

Obviously I have much to say regarding this but I will just touch on the basic points. The National Guard was a blessing.....no reports of anything objectionable at all. Never heard a word about a "nuclear disaster" which of course doesn't really mean anything. FEMA so far has been better than expected. My mom started making phone calls, took matters into her own hands, as soon as she was able and she has already been visited by a FEMA adjustor. She was told, just like the FEMA website states, that they are only obligated to restore a house to safety not its original condition. Yes, it is frustrating to many (or all) because looking back to Katrina we all heard about the $1000 gift cards that were being handed out and used at strip clubs, tattoo parlors, etc.....and now they are nitpicking about walls and living accomodations so how can you not be a bit "bitter?" As I understand it, the residents of that area anyway, don't really want help from the government....but they definitely need it. Roads and bridges are completely gone and I understand at least one bridge will not be restored for maybe a year. This causes real problems for the more rural and mountain communities as the winter approaches....

The most striking observation I can make - people coming together are far more efficient than any governement agency. The flood occured on 9/7 and I got there on 9/11. By the time I arrived debris was already being cleared by the borough and by the time I left on 9/18 you wouldn't know anything happened simply by driving through and relying on the naked eye. The local churches were driving around delivering food, cleaning supplies, water, and offering help. All donated by the residents - none of it required or even solicited at that point. It just happened. In the days to come I visited the church an additional 3 times to pick up some paper towels and disposable gloves.....the place was piled to the ceiling with clothing, cleaning supplies, even some small cleaning appliances. We were always given a bag lunch for everyone at the household that was helping with the clean up. Some rural developments further out of town were evacuated; I believe they were afflicted worse than the actual town in degree and number, and they were the ones who experienced minimal looting. No one in the community could even believe looting would happen there, they were shocked. I believe the looting only happened in those areas because everyone was forced out and the degenerates knew they wouldn't be looking down the end of a shotgun. I had to sleep for about four nights in a home where nothing in the back of the house was even secure - the doors wouldn't even close let alone lock plus no power so no lights. No problems - and I was glad to know the National Guard was around as well as the local police.

I do have an address for anyone wishing to make donations or offer aid however I am not sure about the T & C here so pm me if you want the info. The local response was wonderful but the bigger obstacles are the loss of belongings and fixing structural damage. This particular area is very much composed of retired people living on fixed incomes, it is hard to start over again in your late 70's early 80's. I believe The Grit paper is following the progress of 3 of the families that were left without a home if anyone is interested I am sure you can find it in a google. The WNEP website has done a terrific job keeping people informed throughout the area. I do remember '72 Agnes and they are saying the damage, in this town and outlying area at least, was worse than then.....

I live in Bloomsburg, really close to the University. It's funny seeing people call it a "city" because everyone around here knows "Bloomsburg is the only TOWN in Pennsylvania." I know, it's stupid, but it's basically our slogan.
We have a population of around 20,000, and most of that are college kids from other places.

Anyway, the flooding was really bad - in fact it beat out the floods of Hurricane Agnes back in the 70's that my parents used to talk about when I was a kid. I don't remember if it was the worst flood here EVER, but I remember hearing it was the worst in over 100 years. A lot of people's houses downtown got a few FEET of water, not inches...
Things are starting to look a lot better now, but it's still going to take a good amount of time to get back to "normal".
The water treatment and sewage plants were literally underwater... I can even post a few pictures of them on here if anyone wants me to, as well as pictures from all over town.

As already mentioned, the town decided to cancel the Fair this year, which was a big issue for a few days, because of all the money it brings in - it's pretty much the biggest fair in Pennsylvania, they had bands like Staind and Finger Eleven scheduled to play. At first they were trying their hardest to get all clean up done and have the Fair, but soon realized it would be impossible to clean everything up in town - it was schedule to start this weekend.

A few people did actually have their homes knocked off of their foundations, and we're talking like.. two story houses, pretty crazy stuff. There are still a lot of people who can't go home because everything inside was under a few feet of water, covered in inches of mud.

I was one of the "lucky" ones, went without power for 3 or 4 days, had to throw out a bunch of food because of it... got a few inches of water in the basement that we had to pump out at around 3 in the morning, and had no water at all - for about a week or so. Ironic, considering we were surrounded by water. However, several pipes burst because of the flooding. I know have water again, but I'm still not drinking any of it.. sticking to the bottle water, and still have no hot water at all, because our furnace was damaged when they sent water to the town from Harrisburg.

It is really weird to hear that it wasn't covered in the MSM.. I was talking with a woman the other night who's house was destroyed and she was saying "well Bloom's famous now, we made Good Morning America"

It was very strange seeing the National Guard downtown, and having access to the interstates (80 and 81) closed for several days..

I know I'll never forget it.

I'd also like to say that pretty much all areas of Eastern Pennsylvania were effected by the flooding, Bloomsburg just got the worst of it. Damage basically goes all the way up and down the Susquehanna River as well as Fishing Creek. But, just a quick run down - I'm talking, Bloomsburg, Berwick, Danville, Catawissa, Benton, Lewisburg, Hughesville, Montoursville, Williamsport, Wilkes Barre, etc etc... Everyone knows Hershey Park, I was shocked when I saw pictures of rides there that had been underwater. Also remember reading that something like 147 Water Treatment plants were effected, to sort of give an idea just how big it actually was.