SUNBURY– Sunbury’s flood project is one of the largest federal flood projects in the state. Residents may only see the pumping stations and wall, but Jeff Lewis, Manager of the Sunbury flood department says there is a complex system underground, ” We have a state of the art operation system that we maintain. We have numerous components that are underground that people don’t even see. The entire flood wall has an underground piping system the whole length to catch any water that may seep under the wall. It’s a very integrate system, and we have the capability to pump 270 ,000 gallons per minute of water out during an event.”
During the recent high water event, Lewis said they needed to engage their pumping stations, “We had to activate all of our pumping stations which means the river got to an elevation that water would no longer gravity flow out, so we were forced to pump. The water didn’t get as high as they originally anticipated. It was a minor event we were able to get by with ease.”
Recently the Sunbury Municipal Authority flood department received the outstanding flood protection project award for the flood control system. The department is continually working to improve their system, and this summer they plan to make repairs to cracks and joints in the flood wall. (Sarah Benek)
