close

‘We came back:’ Carnegie marks 20th anniversary of historic flood

By Katherine Mansfield 4 min read
article image - Katherine Mansfield
The Rev. Bob Popichak sprinkles Carnegie first responders with holy water Sept. 17 during the community prayer service marking the 20th anniversary of the flood caused by Hurricane Ivan. Several of those present had responded to the emergency Sept. 17, 2004.

When a crowd gathered on the floral-painted bridge near Carnegie’s historic Husler Building on the evening of Sept. 17, the crowd was dry and the bridge, safely many yards above the creek. But 20 years ago to the date, many of those gathered had been soaked to the bone, and the bridge itself more closely resembled a river.

The Historical Society of Carnegie hosted a solemn remembrance ceremony last week to mark the 20th anniversary of its great flood. On Sept. 17, 2004, nine days after Hurricane Francis poured nearly four inches of rain on Western Pennsylvania, Hurricane Ivan dumped an additional six inches on saturated ground.

“The downtown was decimated,” said Jack Kobistek, vice president of the historical society and a resident who served as Carnegie’s mayor from 2010 to 2018. “The cleanup took a number of years.”

Chartiers Creek overflowed its banks, submerging Carnegie Borough in floodwater, mud and debris. Hundreds of homes and businesses were flooded. Four feet of water rushed madly through the borough, carrying cars, furniture, and boats in its current. People were stranded, waiting helplessly for help – the U.S. Coast Guard and Johnstown River Rescue performed water rescues – and one life was lost to the storm. Five more perished statewide as a result of Ivan.

“The water was up to the top of this bridge. We were stuck on that bridge,” said Carnegie police Chief Jeffrey Kennedy, pointing to the Mansfield Boulevard Bridge. “I was a sergeant at the time. Me and one of my guys, the old chief, was actually stuck on the bridge, so we took a boat, we actually brought a boat out there. The boat hit the bridge and ripped a hole in the boat. So we ended up getting stuck on there, too.”

Throughout the evening, other longtime Carnegie residents and leaders recounted their flood experiences. Mayor Stacie Riley was, at the time, working for her father at All Pro Painters and, as the water began rising, worked with other employees to move equipment to safety.

“In a rush to save the server, computers, files, we missed our opportunity to evacuate,” she said. “When the bottom panel on the garage door gave way, the water surged in. The courtyard between the two buildings transformed into a swiftly moving river so treacherous that two boats actually capsized trying to rescue us.”

Night fell and still Riley and others awaited rescue. She recalled shivering, and palpable anxiety, and finally, around 1:30 a.m., climbing a ladder into a U.S. Coast Guard aquatic tank.

“The experience was both intense and emotional,” Riley said.

It wasn’t the devastation Romeo called on the crowd to remember, though. It was the way people posted signs of encouragement in their windows, the way neighbors helped each other clean, the way locals supported one another and downtown’s remaining businesses.

And it doesn’t forget. During the ceremony, the Rev. Joseph Louisi, who presided over St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Church in 2004 and now serves as chaplain at Jefferson Hospital, said a prayer and led a moment of silence in remembrance of Dennis Santiago, the 35-year-old Carnegie man, and part of the area’s deaf community, who lost his life in the floods.

“That Santiago was remembered, that was touching,” said Marianne Skiba, who attended the anniversary event in honor of her mother, now deceased, who lived through the flood. “Carnegie doesn’t forget its own.”

Another tender moment: Riley poured blessed rose petals over the bridge, into Chartiers Creek, before the Rev. Bob Popichak, of Holy Ghost Orthodox Church, blessed the first responders in attendance.

Though a somber affair, during the event, one uplifting theme emerged: When the storm passed, Carnegie emerged stronger than ever.

“That’s what’s the big deal about this: We thought the town was going to just shut down because so much loss of property and homes and businesses. People rebounded,” Kennedy said. “The town’s really come back, better than it’s ever been.”

CUSTOMER LOGIN

If you have an account and are registered for online access, sign in with your email address and password below.

NEW CUSTOMERS/UNREGISTERED ACCOUNTS

Never been a subscriber and want to subscribe, click the Subscribe button below.

Starting at $/week.

Subscribe Today