Flooding in Pittsburgh, common? (Butler, Fernway: fit in, real estate, insurance)

[Greg Xix]

Floods.

Here is something that I have seen little talk of on here. I know Western PA is a major "river region" And Real Estate agents won't tell me much about flooding over the phone. Except for one who I got the feeling didnt like out-of-towners potentially moving in.

I dont mind wild weather, i.e. A harsh Winter(lived in Reno), or a thunderstorm that sounds like World War III, or the humidity in the Summer which I know are common there.

How often do Floods occur and ruin people's houses? Which areas\counties are more prone? How much is flood insurance? How far from a river would be considered "safe"? I have seen photos from floods like 1936 & 2004. I know floods like those can occur although its the exception rather than the rule. But even moderate and minor floods are still a big concern for me.

[cabs]

You know, this is something that I've been wondering about too. What counties, areas around there flood the most? What is the average annual cost of these damages? Is there a site where these statistics can be viewed?
Thanks loads!

[raynist]

Most of the flooding is local and not on a large scale. You probably do not want to buy a house that is close to a stream as these can be prone to flash flooding (unless the house is on higher ground).

There are some areas that you hear about flooding all of the time, Etna/Millville comes to mind. These generally happen when we get very heavy downpours in the summer.

[Copanut]

You can get flood info from the township/boro where you are considering living. Just contact the officials. or try this;
FEMA Map Service Center - How to Find Your Flood Map

[Geeo]

The state has a map of flood plains that you can check out before you buy. You can get flood insurance. Generally, flooding is mostly along the smaller creeks or streams that feed into the three major rivers and it usually happens in the spring when the snow in the mountains melts. The three rivers occassionally flood, but the series of dams upriver built for flood control aleviate major flooding and damage. The 2004 flooding was kind of a freak of nature when the remnants of Hurricane Ivan veered inland.

[Joe Magarac]

There's a reason why you aren't hearing much about floods around here: it's because they are very localized and very rare.

1. The three rivers are "canalized" and controlled by locks and dams. As a result, it takes an awful, awful lot for them to flood.

2. If the three rivers do flood, very few homeowners will be affected. If you look on Google Maps' terrain feature, you'll see that there are usually very high bluffs along the banks of each river. Most homeowners who live near the rivers live on these bluffs (meaning they won't be flooded) and tons of homeowners don't live near the rivers at all.

3. There are a couple places in which creeks that didn't use to flood now do so regularly because of upstream suburban development. These places are Carnegie, Millvale, and Etna. Avoid them and you'll pretty much avoid flooding.

4. Note that lots of houses around here get wet basements, especially if the backyard has a hill sloping toward the house. This is common and isn't anything to worry about. It can also be remedied with a sump pump or other basement treatment.

Pittsburgh doesn't really have extreme weather. If you fear extreme weather, this would be a good place to live.

[cabs]

What about the Cranberry/Mars area, in Butler county? Does it flood much? Thanks!

[Gimbler]

Good answer Joe - I rated your post positively because that's probably the best and clearest answer possible.

[igo]

As long as your house isn't directly next to a creek to will be ok. Every 3 years or so you will hear of homes being flooded in Etna/Millville. Over 99% of the homes in the pittsburgh region are on higher ground and out of the way of floods.

[Tallysmom]

Originally Posted by cabs

What about the Cranberry/Mars area, in Butler county? Does it flood much? Thanks!

Nope, not so much at all... but parts do sometimes. Let's put it this way -- in the 24 years I lived in Cranberry, I can remember ONCE. The water table is high around Fernway and there is a creek running through it -- that's why Fernway doesn't have basements. My dad always said Fernway was built on the cranberry bogs...

And at the bottom of Bucks Rd there is a small creek that has overrun it's banks... and flooded the homes right next to them, in the Ryan develepment. If memory serves Sun Valley graded the land nearest the creek down... but Ryan didn't build the land up before they built on it, so if the creek over flows it runs twards the houses.

And while Cranberry and Mars might seem connected today, back when I lived in Cranberry, Mars was a totally different world we had nothing to do with. Except the once a year at Christmas we had to trek to the post office to pick up the big tower of meat, cheese and candy my Dad would get from a vendor... since it didn't fit in the box they held at the PO.