Flooding happens at some student parking lots at the University of Hartford in West Harford, but not usually to the point where it looks like a lake.
On Thursday, about 50 students are finding their cars sitting in feet of water because of heavy rains.
Park River, which runs through the campus, began rising at a rate of almost one foot an hour at the height of the storm, David Isgur, spokesman for the university said he said.
There was so much water in parking lot E that the current picked up some cars and floated them into or on top of other vehicles.
School officials had reached out to students and other members of the school community to alert them to flooding and took steps to prevent cars from being swallowed up. They began towing vehicles from some of the low-lying areas of campus until it became too dangerous to bring in tow trucks or allow students to go to their cars, Isgur said.
School officials are now urging students to reach out to the insurance companies that insure their vehicles.
University officials are also meeting with the school’s insurance carrier to determine how to proceed. They will meet with the owners of the cars later on Thursday and try and help as many students as possible.
Parking lots D, C, the lot at Lincoln Theater and a lot behind public safety are also flooded, school officials said.
Flooding has also closed several roads across the state and prompted school officials to close or delay the start of school.
