UPDATED @ 6:55 a.m. Sept. 8: The wet weather has prompted parking changes for Saturday’s Penn State football game. Details are posted on this page. Earlier coverage is posted below.
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UPDATED @ 9:30 p.m. Sept. 7: The Centre County government has issued a number of updates about weather-related road closures. Among them:
- Fox Hollow Road is now open.
- State Route 550 in Patton Township is closed between Bernel Road and Stevenson Road.
- Big Hollow Road in Benner Township is closed.
- U.S. Route 220 in Julian is closed.
- 3100 South Eagle Valley Road is closed.
- Rock Road from Blue Bridge to Timber Ridge is closed.
- Upper Gyp Road is closed.
Earlier coverage is posted below.
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UPDATED @ 5:02 p.m. Sept. 7: While a disaster emergency has been declared for all of the Centre County, the hardest-hit areas appear to include Milesburg, Port Matilda, Philipsburg, Millheim, Orviston and parts of Worth and Gregg townships, county emergency advisories show.
A central portion of Milesburg was under water by late morning Wednesday, while Monument and Orviston saw significant flooding, too, according to the county Emergency Management Agency. It also reported a rock slide on U.S. Route 322 at Strawband Road, in Worth Township.
Other hard-hit areas in the county include the Eagle Creek Trailer Park. North of State College, the Bald Eagle Valley Community Church, 111 Runville Road, Bellefonte, is hosting a Red Cross-operated shelter for those displaced by flooding.
The disaster-emergency declaration was made by the county commissioners on early Wednesday morning. The county Emergency Operations Center was activated at 8 a.m.
Earlier coverage is posted below.
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Earlier report, posted @ 10:22 a.m. Sept. 7:
The Centre County government has announced a disaster emergency as heavy rains threaten significant localized flooding this week.
The county Emergency Operations Center has been activated, as well, Penn State noted on its official news website.
Already, localized flooding was reported early Wednesday morning on a number of roads in the county. Those included Fox Hollow Road in the Toftrees area, U.S. Route 220 between Skytop and Julian, and High Street in Bellefonte.
Likewise, Penn State reported some localized flooding at University Park on Wednesday morning. (Click on the large image above to open a couple local-flooding photos in a gallery. A separate photo gallery is available on this page.)
‘Pedestrians and motorists are advised to use caution and prepare for delays,’ the university wrote in a news release. ‘Motorists should not drive through standing water.’
A flood watch is in effect for the State College area through Thursday evening. Rainfall totals for the week are expected to approach eight inches, according to AccuWeather.com.
Normal, total monthly rainfall for September — in the State College area, at least — is closer to 3.5 inches.
Penn State issued several specific updates early Wednesday about flooding conditions on the University Park campus and immediately surrounding areas. Among them:
- Fox Hollow Road between Cricklewood Drive and Park Avenue was flooded and closed for a period Wednesday morning. The water has since receded, allowing the road to reopen. But the road may need to close again, so authorities are encouraging motorists to avoid that area if they can.
- Southbound traffic on North Atherton Street has been reduced to one lane at Village Drive, thanks to flooding.
- The Pollock Road-Bigler Road intersection on the University Park campus is starting to flood. Drivers are encouraged to avoid the area, and pedestrians are encouraged to be careful.
- The parking lot that’s west of Research B on campus is flooded. Drains there are overwhelmed.
- Big Hollow Road on campus is flooded.
- State Route 550 — Buffalo Run Road — at Ashcraft Lane, in Patton Township, is flooded.
The university indicated it will post ongoing updates via Penn State Live.
StateCollege.com readers are welcome — and encouraged — to share local flooding-related information and photos via e-mail and Twitter. Submissions may be sent to adam.smeltz@statecollege.com or to @SCNewsDesk on Twitter.
More information will be posted on StateCollege.com as it becomes available.
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