ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Wednesday, October 9, 1996 TAG: 9610090059
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A-4 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: NORFOLK
SOURCE: Associated Press
Rain soaked much of eastern Virginia on Tuesday, flooding intersections and tangling traffic as the remnants of Tropical Storm Josephine hurried up the East Coast.
Flood and flash-flood watches were in effect for the eastern half of the state. Areas north of the York River and along the coast were under a coastal flood warning.
In the Hampton Roads area, low-lying intersections were flooded, making the morning commute tough at times as cars had to plow through water. Some cars parked on streets in Portsmouth were partially submerged.
Wind gusts up to 60 mph brought trees down on power lines, knocking out service to 60,000 to 70,000 Virginia Power customers by about 3:30 p.m. Most of the outages were in small pockets, company spokesman Bob Copper said, and crews were expected to have most electricity restored by midnight.
``If you give enough trees enough wind for a long enough time, sooner or later some of them are going to come down,'' Cooper said.
Just over a month ago, Virginia Power experienced more than 400,000 outages when the effects of Hurricane Fran swept through.
More than 70 car accidents were reported by Tuesday afternoon in southeastern Virginia, said Virginia State Police spokeswoman Tammy Van Dame. No one was killed or seriously injured, she said, but ``It was a mess.''
The sun peeked out about noon, but rains continued off and on throughout the day. One to 3 inches was forecast.
``We could have some problems if the rain doesn't let up,'' said Mike Carey, a Virginia Beach police spokesman. He said some low-lying areas usually flood.
Police in Richmond closed down several streets because of high water.
The state Department of Emergency Services had received no reports of major flooding or emergencies, spokesman Mike LaCivita said.
LENGTH: Short : 45 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: AP. Thomas Osborne's car flooded out in the flood. Heby CNBwas one of many drivers who got stuck Tuesday in Newport News.