Timeline: Day 1, Tuesday, Sept. 6, 2011
One year ago today, things began to get ugly.
After "monster" storm Hurricane Irene spared much of central Pennsylvania in the last week of August, causing only some downed trees and power outages that affected about 520 people in Northumberland County, Tropical Storm Lee had come to town.
No one was expecting the "remnants" of Lee to cause the havoc it did, but it started raining Sunday evening, Sept. 4, and wouldn't stop for another four days.
By Tuesday, Sept. 6, forecasts for heavy rains, combined with an already saturated water table, led The National Weather Service to issue a flood watch for 27 Pennsylvania counties, including Northumberland. Residents, especially those in low-lying areas, were advised to stay alert since there was a potential for more than 5 inches of rain in a 48-hour period.
Still, folks went to bed Tuesday night not realizing the disaster that awaited in the following days.