Moisture Close to Aggravating; More in Forecast
Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
21 April 2011
By Timothy Puko
The six-mile riverboat trip from East Liverpool, Ohio, to Midland in
Beaver County usually takes Anthony Bartley less than an hour, even
with several coal barges in tow.
With a strong Ohio River current rushing against him on Wednesday
morning, the trip took more than three hours.
It's been that way this year.
Relentless snow and rain have kept the rivers several feet higher than
normal since January, slowing upriver travel. With rivers cresting near
flood stage this week and a three-day Easter weekend coming, many boat
operators plan to shut down early.
"You see water come up; that happens this time of year," said Bartley,
59, of New Brighton, a captain for Industry Terminal & Salvage with
27 years' experience. "But you never see it where it stays this long
and never goes down. It just comes right back up again. It's been a
nasty year already."
The National Weather Service in Moon recorded 16.57 inches of
precipitation so far this year, more than 6 inches above average. As a
result, shipping on the waterways is dropping off, the Port of
Pittsburgh Commission says, and the flooded Mon Wharf garage keeps
closing -- it will be closed again through the end of this week. Grass
is uncut at city parks, trees are uprooting in saturated soil, and
there's no hot asphalt to fix winter's potholes.
"The weather sucks," Pittsburgh Public Works Director Rob Kaczorowski
said. "We can't wait until the sun comes out."
Blame it on La Nina, said Lee Hendricks, a meteorologist with the
weather service. When it's unusually cool around the equator in the
Pacific Ocean, that affects the world's climate. For Pittsburgh, La
Nina currents mean wet weather and a long wait for warm, sunny days,
Hendricks said.
Despite the sun expected today, the weather service expects two or
three storms to hit Pennsylvania by the end of next week, starting with
rain Friday. Each storm might bring an inch of rain, Hendricks said.
There is a 33 percent chance temperatures will stay unseasonably cool
through July, he said.
It's more than just an annoyance to talk about in casual conversation.
All that rain can bring trouble.
Deeper, faster-running rivers raise the risk of runaway barges. Boat
captains have to keep lines tight, and the Coast Guard has been
reminding industry leaders about ways to prevent accidents, said Lt.
Ben Chamberlain, chief of response operations in Pittsburgh.
Falling trees carry another risk. Tim Sauers, who runs a tree service
company in Pine, said roots can't hold in the soft soil, a problem that
worsens when it's windy. Sauers and his crews have been lifting trees
off homes, decks and driveways, but he says that's typical during
springtime.
"It's Pittsburgh," he said. "Like I always tell everybody, if you want
the weather to change, just wait a minute."
Public works crews say it's too cool and wet for hot asphalt patches
needed to permanently fix potholes.
The city is about a week or two behind schedule with road repair
because of weather delays, Kaczorowski said.
The rain kept workers from cutting grass at parks, painting swimming
pools and even picking up litter, said Kaczorowski and Allegheny County
Public Works Director Joseph A. Olczak. Workers instead are doing more
indoor maintenance and painting.
Olczak is preparing for busy weeks ahead, when he'll need to juggle
workers between roads, parks and pools to catch up on outdoor work.
Major road construction projects were delayed at times, but crews have
time to adjust, said Jim Struzzi, spokesman for PennDOT District 11.
"Just hope for some sunshine," he said.
Timothy Puko can be reached at tpuko@tribweb.com or 412-320-7991.