Area Flooding Affects Marietta
April 3rd 2024
Living in a Rivertown is not for the faint of heart. Our small community in Marietta Ohio is hurting right now and we are not yet in the clear. The Harmar Bridge crosses over the mouth of the Muskingum River where it meets the Ohio River. As of 7:00pm the river is at 37.38 feet while our flood stage is 35 feet and the river is predicted to crest at 40.5 feet tomorrow which is “major flood” territory. While the sandstone of our bridge has stood the test of time since 1856, much of our community is not so lucky with many West Side businesses and roads already closed. Please pitch in if you are able in the coming days and support your small businesses as you can. The HHBC is here to help if we can #mymarietta #harmarvillagestrong
Photo from April 2nd 2024 by Chris Lupardus
April 6th 2024
In the middle of the chaos we were reminded that we will be okay. The river gives and it takes from our community - and this week has been one of take. While we are okay, many of our community members are not. Our hearts go out to them and we offer our support however we can be of service. The Marietta Community Foundation has established a myriad of ways to help in the recovery efforts from this week’s major flooding. Please consider lending a hand or donating to their relief efforts #mymarietta
Photo from April 5th 2024
April 17th 2024
The flooding our community has been experiencing over the last two weeks on the Ohio and Muskingum Rivers has been the worst we’ve seen since 2004 and 2005 reaching levels of up to 40.07 feet and still never fully receding. As many are still recovering, we are reminded of the toll of living in a river town and the responsibility we have here at the Historic Harmar Bridge Company. We have been asked by our friends up river at Valley Gem Sternwheeler to turn our great swingspan and let them through as the waters are too high for them to pass safely. So we ask you to join us on Saturday, April 20th at 12:00pm to watch our board and several community members manually turn the swingspan for the second time in 2024. Come watch this engineering marvel crafted in 1856 in action and then spend some time giving back to our downtown community as they recover from the recent high waters!
Photos by Brian Stover Drone Photography
Photo from April 16th by Brian Stover Drone Photography