Mud runs from creek area to invade Hubbard businesses

Water was about an inch from the ceiling of St. Patrick Church's basement.
& lt;a href=mailto:yovich@vindy.com & gt;By TIM YOVICH & lt;/a & gt;and ROB MEYER
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITERS
HUBBARD -- Now everyone knows why it's called Mud Run.
When the creek overflowed here Sunday night, it deposited thick, nearly-black goop that forced North Main Street businesses to close.
Terry Lloyd, who has been a cook, waitress and bartender at Al's Pub & amp; Grille for seven years, was laboring with other employees Monday to get the bar reopened for business.
"I'd like to take a bulldozer to it," she said of the tavern, which is expected to reopen today after a good scrubbing and disinfecting.
William Williams, president of Williams Machine Shop, said Monday he would be closed at least two days or perhaps as long as a week while he and his sons wheeled mud out of the business.
Williams got an average of 18 inches of mud and pointed to where it had reached the 4-foot level on the back wall.
"I might get $5,000 from my insurance policy," commented Williams, who is a city councilman and chairman of council's utilities committee. He didn't have a damage estimate.
At Pizza Works, owner Steve Bailey was trying to get at least his drive-through opened for today.
Truck blockage?
Mud Run flows along the parking lot on the side of his business. As it overflowed Sunday, a pickup truck was lifted, floated to the creek channel and lodged under a small bridge that spans North Main.
Bailey said he thinks the truck caused the water to back up, submerging three cars in his parking lot.
"The equipment seems to be operating," Bailey said of his business, although the counter will cost $20,000 to replace if it collapses.
Bailey has 27 employees.
Another sort of service
Just up the street, firefighters were pumping water out of the basement of St. Patrick Church, which filled despite a retaining wall.
The Rev. Timothy O'Neill, pastor, said it was a sad coincidence that just Thursday, members of the Hubbard Volunteer Fire Department were at the church in formal uniform to bury one of their own, Daniel Barr, who was killed last weekend riding his motorcycle.
On Monday, firefighters labored in their work uniforms to rid the church of floodwater.
Father O'Neill said firefighters told him they estimated there was more than 1 million gallons of water in the basement -- just 1 inch from the ceiling.
"I think we're pretty well covered, insurancewise," he said.
Despite flood damage, the priest said the annual church festival scheduled for Thursday through Sunday will go on.
"Now we're making it the River Fest," quipped Marilyn Choppa, one of those in charge of the festival.
Father O'Neill said everything in the basement was destroyed. Choppa said that included sauce and meatballs, bingo supplies, baked goods and soft drinks that were being stored for the festival.
Elsewhere, several hundred thousand dollars' worth of inventory and equipment was destroyed by water that reached 5 feet deep at Superior Products Co., 220 Hubbard Road, Youngstown, said owner Charles Ramsey Jr. He called it the worst flooding in the history of the 72-year-old business.
"We will be back and stronger than ever," he vowed.
Iron works fire
On Youngstown's East Side, smoldering metal, fallen bricks and blackened structures are all that remain of the East Jordan Iron Works after a fire Sunday night. The cause is still being investigated, said Lt. Kevin Johnson of the city's fire investigation unit.
East Jordan corporate representative Terry Paquet was unsure of the amount of damage, but Johnson estimated it to be about $500,000.
Andrews Avenue, where the building is located, was reduced to one lane Monday near the building as construction workers demolished and cleared out remains that were in danger of collapsing onto the street.
The fire began at 9 p.m. Sunday night but could not be extinguished right away because standing water surrounded the building. Water from a creek behind the building flooded the parking lot.
About 40 employees worked at the facility, Paquet said. He drove from the company's headquarters in East Jordan, Mich., late Monday.
"When I spoke with some of the people that worked here, there was an overall sadness," Paquet said. "Some of them had been here a number of years."
In Austintown, a large section of Kleber Avenue experienced street flooding Sunday and a sanitary sewer under that street collapsed, said Trustee David Ditzler, adding that sewer repairs were initiated Monday morning.
Flood-control efforts
Trustees Bo Pritchard and Ditzler said the township has undertaken projects that have greatly reduced, but not eliminated, flooding problems. Sunday evening, a detention pond at Resurrection Cemetery overflowed, causing flooding in the Wickliffe area. But the situation would have been much worse if the pond hadn't been installed, township Administrator Mike Dockry said.
In Girard, Indalex Aluminum Solutions was shut down after the building was struck by lightning, sparking a fire at about 7 p.m. Sunday. There was $125,000 in damage to the plant, but no injuries.
Indalex spokesman Scott Langdon said the lightning directly hit a transformer that goes into the plant. As a result, the plant was out of commission for 22 hours.
& lt;a href=mailto:yovich@vindy.com & gt;yovich@vindy.com & lt;/a & gt;rmeyer@vindy.com