Flooding on Western Avenue at the Fuller Road intersection

Western Avenue flooded and closed at the Fuller Road intersection, about 7pm, 4 August 2020.
Hurricane/tropical storm I (Isaias); about 4 inches of rain fell here in the preceding 12 hours.
Closures due to flooding here of Western Avenue, a main emergency route, have happened repeatedly in the past. They have probably been reduced in frequency, by the $600K project completed in 2010 in which the reservoir was drained and converted to a wetland functioning as a retention pond, with rebuilding of the internal and outlet culverts. To prevent these flooding events more effectively the undersized pipe that runs below the Stuyvesant Plaza Western Avenue entrance would have to be replaced. There seems to be a reluctance to do this, because of the extended disruption to traffic and the expense of the construction project that would be necessary.












enlarged portion of the same picture, showing water cascading over the retaining wall at the eastern end of the former  McKownville Reservoir (red arrow points to the top of this cascade), with flow sufficient to be the principal source of this flooding of Western Avenue.
Run-off from the impervious surfaces of Crossgates Mall and Commons, and lesser amounts from Stuyvesant Plaza, and the local parts of the Thruway and Northway, are the main sources of this floodwater.
















For entertainment, if nothing else, the current output of the online FEMA flood hazard map for this intersection.
To be fair, they do provide a disclaimer elsewhere that local sources of flooding other than normal floodplain inundation are not included in their assessments.......a good lesson that it is wise to examine the assumptions behind any predictions made by others.


















plan from 2009 of the eastern end of the McKownville Reservoir showing the location (purple line) of the undersized 24" (RCP) reinforced concrete outlet pipe not replaced in the 2009 project.

















and another event, in the late afternoon of 18 July 2023; there were over 3 inches of rain locally, in an interval of about 1½ hours.
These pictures were taken about 8pm, about 1½ hours after the rain ceased. [pictures credit: Susan Anderson]
1. Western Avenue - Fuller Road intersection
2. Stuyvesant Plaza exit to Western Avenue
3. Flood water spilling from the former McKownville Reservoir dam (located to the right) into Western Avenue



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