Swampscott Looks Back: A Year Since The Deluge

It was a year ago last week in the predawn hours of Oct 4, that a massive storm parked over Swampscott.

The October thunderstorm dropped about 5.5 inches of rain, most of it during a 90-minute period, according to George Allen's weather station above Fisherman's Beach

Towns and cities around Swampscott got a good soaking — Boston received a little more than an inch of rain from the storm — but Swampscott was ground zero.

Whole neighborhoods were deluged, their basements filled with water.

In the following days and weeks came the clean-up from the flooding. Streets sides were heaped with soaked carpets, couches, toys, bedding, books, albums. You name it.

FEMA came to document the losses but they were not widespread enough to trigger major federal assistance.

So here is a look back at measurement's from the weather event, courtesy of George Allen's weather station, and some of the consequences.

Three of four successive 15-minute intervals had rainfall rates of 4 inches per hour [eg, 1" in 15 minutes]. 

According to the Weather Station, the world record for most rainfall in an hour was 12 inches, which fell i Missouri on June 22, 1947 and Hawaii in January 1956. 

The official world record for a one-minute period is 1.23 inches at Unionville, MD on July 4, 1956, according to the blog.

Still, 5.5 inches is a lot of rain. 

"An incredibly amazing amount for that short time," said George Allen.   It's no wonder everything flooded.

The storm drain pressure was so great from above Allen household that the toilet in their basement became a geyser, flooding the basement.