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After Intense Floods, Village of Mamaroneck Rebounds and Recovers

Posted on: October 2, 2023 - 12:00pm

October 2, 2023 (Mamaroneck, N.Y.) — After record-breaking rains flooded the Village on Friday, the Village of Mamaroneck is continuing its clean-up work that began on Saturday and resuming its regular business serving its 20,000+ residents.

"Friday’s storm rivaled Hurricane Ida, which swept through and devastated Mamaroneck in September 2021," said Village of Mamaroneck Mayor Tom Murphy. "Fortunately, the damage from Friday’s storm was significantly less."

Still, many in the Village’s flood zone areas are currently in the process of recovering from Friday’s storm, and the Village will continue to aid and assist those residents and properties in whatever way it can.

Statistics during and immediately after Friday’s storm

  • During the height of the storm, between 10:30am and 7:30pm, over 160 emergency calls were made from Village residents needing assistance.
  • Approximately 50 families were evacuated at the height of the storm.
  • Basements at 62 residences, two churches, and the non-profit Community Resource Center were flooded and pumped out throughout the weekend by five diligent teams from the Village’s Department of Public Works (DPW) and Fire Department. Mamaroneck is the only municipality along Westchester’s Sound Shore that pumps out residences.
  • All Village streets were open on Saturday morning, less than 24-hours after Friday’s storm. Street cleaners were out throughout the weekend and are continuing to clean Village streets.

Recent efforts the Village has made to clean, maintain, and dredge the Mamaroneck and Sheldrake Rivers allowed Friday’s heavy rains to move more swiftly and unimpeded into the Mamaroneck Harbor and the Long Island Sound.

Since March 2022, the Village has used $2.7 million in tax-payer funds, in addition to $1.2 million from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) that was awarded to the Village from the White House, to clean, maintain, purchase equipment, and dredge the Mamaroneck and Sheldrake Rivers, thus making our community more flood resilient. That investment paid off on Friday and lessened this disaster.

On the horizon

More work to mitigate flooding in the Village is being done. 

The first phase of the federally funded and managed $100,000,000 Army Corps of Engineers (ACE) Flood Risk Management Project is set to begin this December 2023 at the Ward Avenue Bridge and will continue working its way north up the Mamaroneck River. While the Village of Mamaorneck does not control this ACE project, the Village is collaborating with the Army Corps to make this project the cornerstone in making our community more flood resistant in the future. 

In the days and weeks ahead

  • Residents who have questions or require assistance may call the Village’s Emergency Operations Center at 914-825-8773, between 9am and 5pm. The EOC will continue to be in operation until Wednesday, October 4.
  • A limited number of flood clean-up kits are available at the Village Firehouse at 146 Palmer Ave. These kits are available on a first-come, first-save basis. One kit per family.
  • The Village has started clearing debris piles. First and foremost, for the safety of everyone and our firefighters, DO NOT BLOCK fire hydrants with debris. Debris waste should be placed at the curb and at least 3-feet away from fire hydrants. If you have a vehicle parked along the street, please move your vehicle so that our trucks and crews can pick up debris quickly and efficiently. The Village Manager has issued FREE parking in all Village Parking lots until 5:00pm on Wednesday, October 4 to expedite this process.
  • Vehicles that were abandoned along Village streets during the storm were towed to Vincent’s Garage at 636 Fenimore Road. If your car was towed, contact Vincent’s at (914) 698-5200. If you have a disabled vehicle parked along Village streets, it will need to be moved by Thursday, October 5 – otherwise it will be towed.
  • While Columbus Park is now open, the playgrounds are still closed and the pedestrian bridges need to be inspected before they are reopened. 

"I want to thank all our residents for their cooperation and perseverance during this emergency," said Village of Mamaroneck Mayor Tom Murphy. "While this was a difficult few days, our municipal workers went above and beyond the call of duty. We will continue to make progress toward a more flood resilient Mamaroneck. We will continue looking out for one another!"

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