N.J. residents grapple with the flooding

Their house was completely surrounded, and the yard and driveway were submerged as water from the north branch of the Rancocas Creek in Burlington County rushed by a few feet away.

But Tom and April Rose were feeling lucky on Wednesday. The flood - the second in the two weeks - hadn't reached the house.

"People around here have canoes just in case they have to get away," said April Rose, 58, who has lived on Creek Lane in Pemberton for five years. "Floods like this happen at least once a year."

While most people enjoyed Wednesday's sunny sky, some who live along creeks in the region were dealing with the aftermath of the week's heavy rain.

In Burlington County - among the areas hardest hit - dozens of homes in Southampton, Lumberton, and other low-lying communities were turned into islands. Birmingham Bridge on Birmingham Road, and Mount Misery Road between Four Mile and Junction Roads in Pemberton, were closed.

At a sandpit pond in Port Elizabeth, Cumberland County, 250 feet of a retaining wall collapsed about 8 a.m. Wednesday, sending water cascading across Routes 47 and 347 and deluging 10 homes, said Gordon Gross, an emergency management coordinator in Maurice River Township.

Eight residents were evacuated, including a woman who was rescued by boat, authorities said. Routes 47 and 347 were expected to be open by Thursday.

"I've been here 27 years and never seen anything like this," Gross said. The retaining wall apparently failed because "the ground was just saturated."

In Lumberton, the south branch of the Rancocas crested on Wednesday, spreading water farther than it was at the height of the rain the day before.

Yards of houses near the bridge on Main Street and other sections along the creek were vast ponds. But no one had to be evacuated.

In the Ewansville section of Southampton, Jennifer Cupoli and her dog, Duke, were mesmerized by the north branch of the Rancocas racing by a few feet from her home Wednesday. The surge already had floated away her dock and dislodged her wooden bulkhead.

"Other than that, we're alright," said Cupoli, 38, who lives on Route 206. "Two weeks ago, the water came right up to the house. This flood and one two weeks ago were the most water I've seen in the past 21/2 years I've been here. But I enjoy the wacky weather."

About 20 feet away in the swirling water stood a group of trees on what is usually an island. Beyond that was a house surrounded by the fast-moving creek. It was boarded up more than a year ago and scheduled to be demolished because of repeated flood damage.

"I feel sorry for the young couple who bought that house and then had to go," said Sheryl Jones, 52, who lives on Rancocas Trail in Ewansville, overlooking the north branch. "My husband was concerned a little because he saw how fast the creek came up. But we sit high enough that we were OK."

Just across the north branch on Creek Lane, Joe and Helen Dawhy pointed to the water that covered their dock and surrounded their above-ground pool and trampoline.

"The dock has been under water the whole month," said Joe Dawhy, 65, a retired Camden firefighter. "I had to pull our picnic table up to higher ground."

He said parts of his next-door neighbor's house were swamped, including the area that houses the heater.

"I feel lucky," Dawhy said. "We're not swimming in our house."

Nearby, Tom Rose, 73, exited his house on Creek Lane wearing protective plastic bags on his feet. "I think we're fortunate," he said.

"By Friday, the water will be all gone," said his wife, April.