LEOMINSTER, MASS. (WHDH) - Students are set to return to class in Leominster on Thursday as cleanup efforts continue following severe flash flooding in the area earlier this week.
More rain on Wednesday sent water cascading down already washed out roadways and triggered a flood watch for much of Massachusetts, Connecticut and Rhode Island as well as parts of southern New Hampshire.
And as kids head back to class and the community looks to return to a sense of normalcy, officials say the recovery from flooding may still take months.
“It’s going to take a long time to have this all fixed up,” said Leominster resident Ann Godfrey.
Floodwaters rose fast on Monday, ultimately washing out roads and damaging homes, businesses and city facilities.
First responders from numerous state and local agencies rescued residents from flooded homes. As the sun then rose on Tuesday morning, several roads remained closed due to sinkholes and other damage.
Near Hamilton Street in Leominster, railroad tracks still hung over a washed out culvert on Wednesday.
Asked if he had ever seen anything like the scene before him, one DPW worker responded.
“No,” he said. “Never in my lifetime.”
A total of 11 inches fell over five hours in some places Monday night, prompting a state of emergency declaration from city officials.
On Tuesday night, Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey officially announced her own state of emergency declaration aimed at expediting relief efforts in the Leominster area and in the North Attleboro area, which was also hit hard by flooding on Monday.
Leominster Mayor Dean Mazzarella on Wednesday said city schools will open with a two hour delay Thursday after two days of canceled classes due to flooding.
Mazzarella also said city crews had been able to open up one lane on some previously closed streets as of Wednesday morning.
The process of fully opening streets including Mechanic Street and Hamilton Street, though, could take additional time.
“It could be weeks before we can get those areas open,” Mazzarella said.
While crews worked to clear and repair roads, water was draining slowly in the basement of Advance Auto Parts in Leominster on Wednesday.
Other businesses were continuing their cleanup efforts after they faced feet of water just days earlier.
Along storm-damaged train tracks, heavy equipment was brought in to support work to restore regular Commuter Rail train service, which has been replaced by shuttle buses for part of the MBTA’s Fitchburg Line in recent days.
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