Heavy rain pummeled Norwich Wednesday causing the Yantic River to flood and create a mess for some nearby businesses.
With more rain in the forecast Friday, they didn’t take any chances.
The owners of Colonial Carpet & Tile sandbagged and put plastic among the sides of the building. While they dogged a bullet Friday, it doesn’t erase the extensive damage they’re still cleaning up from Wednesday’s heavy rain.
They’ve already filled a dumpster with everything that’s destroyed — and they’re still going.
“Got rid of obviously everything three feet or below in here because it’s full of water, mold and river. It’s pretty disgusting stuff,” said Bonnie McIntosh, president of Colonial Carpet & Tile about the bottom floor of her business.
She and her husband co-own the store and don’t have flood insurance. There was two and a half to three feet of water from the Yantic River inside Wednesday, according to McIntosh.
That’s when the Yantic River was swollen. Even the typically mellow Yantic Falls were ferociously fast.
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In fact, the parking lot the McIntosh’s share with Domino’s looked like it could have been part of the river.
The rain Friday lead to even more flooding fears.
“This morning I was absolutely afraid. I went home I got my big pumps because the news was saying it was torrential and it was torrential this morning,” Domino’s owner Mark Massey said.
But he lucked out. No water on Friday and on Wednesday he only lost a battery backup, two monitors and some paper products.
Massey said he even made up for lost business that day, despite opening two and a half hours late.
“We dodged a bullet,” Massey said.
Back at Colonial Carpet & Tile, McIntosh said her husband wanted to clean the bottom floor. But this is not what he had in mind.
“So he’s getting his cleaning job now, I guess. Brand new floors and a lot of clean out,” McIntosh said.
Some good news, some of her manufacturers and distributors are saying they’ll help out with new floors, according to McIntosh.
She said the flood of 2010 was even more damaging.
