High winds and rain lashed Bangor on Wednesday, causing localized flooding and blowing over trees.
Flooding along Kenduskeag Stream peaked around 10:40 a.m. at 5 feet, with water filling half the bottom level of the parking garage behind Bagel Central. Both sides of the canal flooded, and water reached the windows of the basement level of the bakery.
A storm surge around the time of the 9:30 a.m. high tide led to the flooding, Bangor Fire Chief Thomas Higgins said. The stream still has a thick layer of ice, which cracked as the water rose.
Water started receding around 11:10 a.m., decreasing about a foot-and-a-half in the first 15 minutes. Bagel Central was able to start pumping water out of the basement.
Low tide is expected at 4:18 p.m., with high tide coming at 10 p.m. Gage height readings on the Penobscot River in Bangor reached just over 13 feet, considered moderate flood stage, at around 10:45 a.m.
Temperatures started dropping late Wednesday morning and sidewalks began icing over. A low of 30 degrees is expected overnight, according to the National Weather Service.
The storm hit as parts of the state were still recovering from a Dec. 18 storm that knocked out power for hundreds of thousands of Mainers. Repairs are still ongoing to utility poles in northern and eastern Maine damaged in December’s wind storm.
Kenduskeag Avenue near Harlow Street remained closed around 3:45 p.m. Wednesday after winds blew over a large pine tree and pulled power lines down with it earlier in the morning. At least four utility poles are snapped and a transformer is on the ground in the area.
A Versant worker was assessing the damage around 10 a.m. and power remained out for about 1,050 people throughout Bangor’s Little City neighborhood, near where the tree came down, as of 3:45 p.m.
Following heavy snow overnight, at least three quarters of an inch of rain had fallen in the Bangor area as of 1 p.m., according to the National Weather Service. Another storm is predicted to hit the state Saturday, bringing snow and wind gusts.
Water flowed throughout the streets of Bangor, with some localized flooding happening near blocked storm drains until the rain stopped early-afternoon Wednesday.
Few people were out walking in downtown Bangor Wednesday morning. Those who were outside faced strong winds that whipped rain into their faces, with most people taking pictures and videos of the weather.
Hurricane-force winds were reported in coastal Maine, and more than 50,000 power outages have been reported across the state.