RICHMOND聽鈥斅燩etersburg officials have declared a local state of emergency after several days of heavy rain led to severe flooding across the city.
The relentless rain led to flooding that hit across the entire city Monday evening and early Tuesday. With more rain in the forecast, a flood watch has been extended through midnight across the area.
Officials called a press conference at 1 p.m. Tuesday to announce the state of emergency and address how it will fix those problems moving forward.
Petersburg has faced flooding and standing water for several years. While those issues are widespread, some of the most problematic spots are in the low-lying areas of Old Towne Petersburg.
Officials said that the heavy rain has overwhelmed its aged infrastructure. While isolated flooding has been common, they said storms of recent years have been bringing unprecedented amounts of rain with them.
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鈥淚n terms of the nature of the flooding 鈥 what we鈥檙e seeing here is an extreme amount of rain,鈥 said Petersburg City Manager March Altman. 鈥淚t鈥檚 not just yesterday, it鈥檚 Saturday, Sunday and all throughout the week. That saturated the soil.鈥
Altman called it the equivalent of a 100-year flood event given the amount of rain that鈥檚 been seen over the past week.
City officials said they want to bring contractors to clear debris and lessen the flooding problems as a short-term solution. The long-term updates for stormwater infrastructure could take 10 to 20 years, Altman said.
Mayor Samuel Parham said it could be a quarter of a billion-dollar proposition to completely overhaul the city鈥檚 wastewater system.
The biggest issue, he said, is the city鈥檚 harbor area adjacent to the heart of Old Towne. The area was once an open waterway but is now filled with dirt and silt. Parham said the harbor catches rainwater, leaving it with nowhere to go.
鈥淲e have so much silt that鈥檚 built up in the Appomattox in our harbor area,鈥 Parham said. 鈥淚f the water can鈥檛 get out of the city, the water is going to keep ponding up down on Old Street and River Street because there鈥檚 nowhere for that water to go.鈥
City officials have wanted to dredge the harbor area for decades but have been unsuccessful.
At the time of the press conference, there were still two roads closed because of high water.
Amid more expected rain, Petersburg officials have urged residents to keep their eyes on the sky. They鈥檙e asking drivers to turn around when they see high water, rather than attempting to drive through it.
State Sen. Lashrecse Aird, D-Petersburg, put out a statement Tuesday afternoon.
"I want to commend the tireless work of Petersburg鈥檚 Fire, EMS and Public Works employees, whose efforts during this crisis have been nothing short of heroic. My office stands ready to ensure our local officials have the state resources they need now and moving forward.
"We are also prepared to work with our federal partners to advocate for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to dredge the Appomattox River 鈥 an important long-term step to reduce future flooding risk."
