Better days ahead, drain commissioner says about flooding in Frandor

New drain will handle at least 2 inches in 24 hours

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MONDAY, Sept. 13  — It will be of little solace to drivers whose cars were caught in today’s torrential lunchtime rainstorm in the Frandor area, but Ingham County Drain Commissioner Pat Lindemann says help is on the way.

Prompted by a call from one of the owners of Spare Time Entertainment in Frandor, City Pulse asked Lindemann why Frandor flooded today despite the work being done on the Monthgomery Drain, Lindemann said: “The project is not done yet.” The drain runs through Frandor to the Red Cedar River.

“It’s still draining as it always was,” said Lindemann, referring to U.S. 127, “so it floods once or twice a year and they have to shut the highway down. Within the parking lot of Frandor or at Saginaw and Grand River, those pipes are not hooked up.

“When the project is completed and functioning, the first 2 inches of rain will produce no flooding at all. The system is designed to handle the first 2 inches and never put a drop of water in the  river and not flood anywhere. About 95% of the time, we’re 2 inches or less, according to the statistics we’ve been keeping since 1905.” He said that is 2 inches in 24 hours.

“When we get 3 inches of rain, the system will be full and will escape faster. There might be some isolated flooding at that time”

Meanwhile, expect flooding like today to happen in similar or heavier rainfall until the project is completed by this time next fall,  said Lindemann.

“We should be able to handle about 2 inches of water in a 24-hour period. It doesn’t mean we won’t get 5 inches of rain two days in a row. There’s no predicting how much it is going to rain. On average, if you look at the statistical values and the way we’ve designed the system, it should take the first 2 inches of rain out of any storm and store it without flooding anybody."

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