Parts of Maine saw major flooding and road washouts

Heavy rainfall Thursday, June 29 led to significant flooding and road washouts in pockets of Maine.

Parts of the state saw a half-foot of rain, leading to road washouts in towns including Wilton and Jay, where Route 133 shut down and remained closed the nest day as the Maine Department of Transportation assessed damage. Parts of the road collapsed and will need to be repaired, spokesperson Paul Merrill said, though he couldn’t provide a timeline.

The department has been calling in contractors and equipment since the night of June 29, he said.

Reports indicate 5 or 6 inches of rain fell within a 24-hour period near Jay, though another report recorded 1.32 inches of rain about 9 miles south of Dixfield, said Jon Palmer, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service office in Gray.

“That report does not do justice to the amount of damage there was,” he said about Jay and surrounding communities.

Nearly 6 inches of rain fell near Rockwood and Brassua Lake in northern Somerset County, Palmer said. Pittston Farm saw 1.89 inches of rain, while the Brassua dam recorded 3.45 inches, he said.

Earlier in the week, Andover in Oxford County received roughly 6 inches of rain in a short span, which resulted in “probably one of the worst floods the town has ever had,” Palmer said.

While visiting a Cooperative Observer Program site — where volunteers collect meteorological data — there Tuesday, Wyman Hill Road was washed out, and Cross Road also saw significant damage from flooding, he said. Brooks and streams had diverted into people’s lawns and then washed out roads, Palmer said.

The NWS issued flash flood warnings in parts of Aroostook, Franklin, Oxford, Piscataquis and Somerset counties. 

Elsewhere, there were washouts along Elliotsville Road in the Piscataquis County town of Monson and Church Avenue in the Aroostook County town of Frenchville, according to meteorologist Angela LaFlash at the NWS office in Caribou.

“There was excessive runoff and flooding on Route 1 in Frenchville,” she said.

The weather service expects conditions to improve, but the wet pattern — during a historically rainy month in some parts of Maine — isn’t over yet, Palmer said. He predicted rain will continue in some areas through the first week of July.

Eastern and northern parts of the state should anticipate more rain this weekend, with scattered thunderstorms in the afternoon on the Fourth of July, LaFlash said.

Central and southern regions will likely get a break from major showers and flooding, though Jay and Wilton could see an isolated shower or two, Palmer said.