UPDATE: Occoquan Residents Cannot Evacuate Due to Impassable Roads

Update 10:10 p.m.:

[Editor's note: We originally received word from one of Pat Lynn's children that she had been evacuated, as reported in the original story below. The correction and update are below, above the original story.]

From Pat Lynn's son Ed: "I've been talking with my mother, Pat Lynn, off and on all evening and OWL initially requested that she evacuate, only to rescind after deciding that all roads out of town were impassable. She's still at her house and hasn't left. Not only did the water inside the house never reach four feet, most of the basement remained dry. The water outside of her house was probably four feet deep, but the basement only took on a small fraction of that."

Original Story:

At about 8 p.m. this evening, Occoquan resident Pat Lynn and her family were evacuated from their house on Union Street after the severe flooding caused four feet of water to rise in their basement.

Resident James Phelps' basement is also flooded with several feet of water, but he lives higher up on the hill from Lynn.

Phelps reported that a car turned over in the flood waters on Union Street earlier this evening. One of the alleyways has also washed out and Mill Street is awash in water. All the streams and creeks are overflowing, and there is nowhere for the water to go, since the Occoquan River is full. In addition, Occoquan is receiving a heavy amount of runoff from Lake Ridge.

"This is what I talked about with the ," Phelps said. "Granted, this was a perfect storm, but this water running down is runoff from Lake Ridge."

Evacuees can take shelter at Woodbridge High School, which will open for shelter at 10:30 p.m. this evening. Two buses are shuttling people there for Marumsco Trailer Park and Holly Acres. Those with cars may also drive there, said Prince William County Fire and Rescue Battalion Chief and Deputy Fire Marshal Joseph Robertson.