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By GREGORY D. KESICH, Staff Writer Tuesday, April 17, 2007

Two people died as a destructive spring storm lumbered up the Atlantic Coast Monday, dumping heavy rain driven by high winds, wreaking havoc on roads, homes and power lines throughout southern Maine.

Rivers and streams topped their banks and flooded roadways all over York and Cumberland counties.

A Lebanon woman and her grandchild were swept away while trying to wade across a flooded section of Chick Road and drowned despite attempts by rescuers to save them. Along the coast, the wind and waves lashed beaches, leaving severe erosion in their wake.

Central Maine Power reported that 123,570 customers had lost electricity as of Monday evening and some could remain in the dark for days. With crews struggling to prevent damage from downed live power lines, said CMP spokeswoman Gail Rice, work toward assessing damage and restoring power would not begin until today.

Although the daily recorded rainfalls are nowhere near record levels, this storm was one of the worst in memory for Cumberland County Emergency Management Agency Director George Flaherty.

"With the amount of rain, the wind, the amount of erosion and the loss of power, this is the worst I've seen in 40 years," Flaherty said.

Lebanon resident Donna Dube, 50, and her granddaughter, Saphire Perro, 4, of Manchester, N.H., drowned when they tried to cross the flooded roadway to get to their house near the intersection of Chick and Little River roads at 1 p.m., said Mark Latti, spokesman for the Maine Warden Service.

The Maine Warden Service recovered them from the swollen waters of the Little River, and they were taken to Goodall Hospital in Sanford, where they were pronounced dead, Latti said.

"It underscores how dangerous crossing flooded roadways can be," Latti said. "They felt they could get across to their house but ended up getting swept in, not realizing how deep or swift the current was in that area."

The storm's arrival coincided with seasonably high tides late Monday morning, resulting in some of the worst coastal flooding in years. Some of the worst damage was in Camp Ellis in Saco, where the high tides caused serious structural damage to beachfront houses. Safety officials went house-to-house in Camp Ellis Monday afternoon, enforcing a mandatory evacuation. A shelter was set up at the Saco Community Center for evacuees.

Dozens of homes suffered water damage from flooding, and city officials feared some were so damaged they were no longer safe. Saco officials said a building inspector would go to homes after the storm to determine whether buildings would be condemned.

Rainfall was measured at just over 4 inches in Portland to almost 8 inches in Sanford, but that did not tell all of the story, meteorologists said.

It fell on ground already saturated from two recent storms, causing streams and rivers to top their banks, said Michael Cempa of the National Weather Service in Gray.

On Oct. 21, 1996, Portland recorded 10.53 inches of rain in a 24-hour period, driven by wind gusts up to 40 miles per hour.

Less than half that amount fell Monday, but the high winds and tides made this storm even more destructive.

"People compare this to 1996, but to me this is much worse," Flaherty said.

Late Sunday night, Gov. John Baldacci issued an emergency declaration. Along the coast, officials asked residents to leave low-lying areas such as Wells Beach, Higgins Beach and Pine Point in Scarborough.

By Monday morning in Portland, flood waters rose quickly and hit before the high tide at 10:41 a.m.

Jed Harris, who owns the Carroll block on Commercial Street, said his building's basement was dry at 9:45 a.m. Several inches of water entered the basement in a period of about four minutes shortly afterward, Harris said. Forecasters expected a 13-foot storm tide, the highest since December 1990.

As high tide approached, DiMillo's Floating Restaurant was evacuated. Floats at the adjacent marina were sustaining damage and at least three boats sank, according to Steve DiMillo, the restaurant's owner.

"This is definitely the worst sea I've ever seen," he said.

Portland police wanted the restaurant closed because of concerns that the 1,400-ton vessel could break free of its moorings. Just minutes before high tide, DiMillo said via cell phone that the system seemed to be holding. The floating restaurant, opened in 1982, rode out the storm with DiMillo and some of his staff aboard.

There were signs of erosion throughout the area. Part of Portland's Eastern Promenade Trail was washed away Monday. Rocks supporting the popular jogging and bike path above East End Beach were swept out, taking parts of a fence and black-top surface with them.

Officials in South Thomaston planned to gauge the damage from Monday night's high tide to determine how long Spruce Head Island would be cut off from the mainland.

Heavy surf washed away parts of the causeway, prompting officials to evacuate more than 100 residents, said Fire Chief Bryan Calderwood. Officials guided residents off the island along secure portions of the causeway.

Amtrak's Downeaster suspended service because the tracks were washed out in Berwick, and the Portland International Jetport lost electricity for a time. In Portland, the Patriot's Day 5-mile road race was canceled for the first time in its 78-year history.

In Cape Elizabeth, police said one man suffered a leg injury when he was hit by a wave after sneaking into Fort Williams Park, which was closed for safety reasons.

The Coast Guard reported many boats adrift in the pounding water, with at least one sinking in Boothbay Harbor.

"These are mostly unmanned vessels, which due to weather conditions started moving," said Coast Guard Sr. Chief Steven Corry. "There was one sinking up in Boothbay Harbor. There's probably a lot more than we know about."

In Harpswell, the churning seas of Merriconeag Sound spit seaweed and lobster buoys onto the causeway to Potts Point. Harpswell rescue crews had to take patients to Midcoast Hospital, via Mountain Road, because Route 123 to Brunswick was closed, as were many of the town's side roads, said Harpswell Fire Lt. Mona Chipman.

"Our guys were setting up cones and they just had trees coming down around them and had to get out of there," she said. Much of the town was without power or telephone service, she said.

Rescue crews were checking on elderly residents to make sure they were OK, and emergency calls were being routed through Chipman's cell phone.

Moe's Store on Route 123 used a generator to keep the lights and coolers working, but added sales up on a piece of paper.

Janet Kirkpatrick clutched her fresh coffee gratefully Monday afternoon.

"The last cup I had was at 4 a.m., then the power went out," she said. That also left the exposed summer cottage she was renting without heat.

"It's comfortable when the wind doesn't blow," she said smiling wearily, while the howling wind occasionally flung open the market's front door. Her telephone also was on the blink. "That's the thing that makes you feel isolated," she said.

State police dispatchers were swamped with emergency calls, five times as many as a usual shift.

Instead of the typical 300 to 400 calls, emergency dispatchers in Gray received 1,400 calls in an eight-hour shift, 1,716 before the storm started to wind down.

The storm was not a coastal phenomenon, and roads throughout the region were flooded and blocked by trees uprooted by high winds.

"We've got mucho, mucho roads closed, blocked off or damaged," said Flaherty.

Road closures were reported in Baldwin, Bridgton, Brunswick, Falmouth, Freeport, Gorham, Gray, Harrison, Naples, Sebago Casco, Scarborough, Westbrook, Windham and Yarmouth.

The Route 302 bridge between Portland and Westbrook was one of the many roads closed.

The occupants of three vehicles had to be rescued by boat when they tried to cross flooded roads in Berwick, said Deputy Fire Chier Brian Beeler.

Two vehicles stalled out in deep water on Hubbard Road near Keay Brook, Beeler said. The third was stuck on Little River Road near Carolyn Drive.

Still, things could have been worse. Because Monday was a holiday for schools, government and many businesses, there were fewer cars on the roads and fewer people stranded by the closures.

The Presumpscot River reached flood stage at 15 feet Monday afternoon and was not expected to crest at 24 feet until sometime overnight.

Minor flooding was also expected around the Androscoggin, which was expected to crest Wednesday morning at 16 feet, 3 feet over flood stage.

Flaherty said the damage could be limited if forecasts hold true and there are only moderate rains in the next few days.

"It goes up fast and it goes down fast," Flaherty said. "If we don't have the intensity that we saw today we'll be alright. The biggest thing is how fast the rivers will subside."

The storm drove dozens to shelters in Saco, Scarborough, Wells, and Portland.

The Salvation Army set up at the Portland Expo and is prepared to provide meals to about 100 people, and the American Red Cross set up cots. The Salvation Army served breakfast to evacuees Monday morning at the Parks and Recreation Facility in Saco.

State Emergency Management Agency spokeswoman Lynette Miller cautioned against driving through flooded roadways or touching downed power lines, and said Mainers should keep an eye on their friends and neighbors, especially in flood-threatened areas.

"The watchword for people is personal safety," Miller said.

Staff Writer Gregory D. Kesich can be contacted at 791-6336 or at: gkesich@pressherald.com