Rivers Crest After Historic Rain Storm in Massachusetts

(NECN: Lauren Collins, Andover, Mass.) - Several rivers north of Boston have finally crested -- among them the Shawsheen, Spicket and the Merrimack.

The sun came out and dried up all the rain, yet the itsy bitsy Shawsheen River continued to rise Thursday.

"I know some of the kids over there. We usually ride bikes and stuff around here, but not today," says Sandro Dufrit who stood in a flooded back yard on Thursday.

The river decided to take the high road, the busy route 28 in Andover, Massachusetts.

"Route 28 is narrowed down to one lane both north and south bound right in the area of Shawsheen Square," explains Andover Police Commander Lt. James Hasham.

Residents cleared their cars out of the flood prone Washington Park Condominiums, while the director of a nearby senior living facility nervously watched the water levels.

"IIt was probably two or three hours ago we saw the high water level and now it is starting to recede. Even if it recedes very slowly i don't mind but it's a very good sign that it's going the other way," says Marilyn Stasonis of Atria Senior Living.

The last flood two weeks ago -- all 120 residents had to evacuate.

This time, Lt. Hasham says, "no evacuations. There are some individual homes and properties that are flooded."

Like Brad Pearsons' house. It's wet and, for a while, it was dark. 22-thousand Merrimack Valley customers lost power for about three hours Thursday when the a National Grid substation failed:

"We lost it about 5:30 this morning, bout an hour after i went to sleep for the first time. Then we had to head to Home Depot around 6:15 this morning to get one of the last generators that they had," says Pearsons.

That kept his three sump pumps going, even as ground water trickled in, protecting the hot water heater and furnace he replaced last week.

"Just bought this house in October. We love the neighborhood so we'll stick it out. But these last three weeks have been terrible."

Elsewhere in the area, The Spicket River flowed into the parking lot of a CVS in Metheuen. Concern that it would spill onto roadways in Lawrence prompted officials to close Central Catholic High School for the day.

The Merrimack crested mid-day in Lawrence at the fifth highest level on record, but caused only minor problems.

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