Niskayuna Supervisor Joe Landry surveys the area surround the
berm constructed at the town’s water plant on Friday, Sept. 2.
Photo by John Purcell. Niskayuna’s water plant was in danger as
the Mohawk River rose during Tropical Storm Irene, but town
employees devised a plan to prevent damage. Town officials
started mobilizing town employees around 6 p.m. on Sunday, Aug.
28, after initial reports came in on possible flood levels
following heavy rain. There were six dump trucks, front-end
loaders, excavator and bulldozers at the town’s water plant
working into the night. There was another crew stationed north
of plant at the town landfill with an excavator and a front-end
loader to gather dirt for the circular barrier. “Initial reports
we were getting was it was going to be 7 to 8 feet above the
100-year flood, which was over those windows (four inches
above),” said Supervisor Joe Landry. “There is no way we could
have built a berm as high as that building … we were able to
accommodate the modified numbers.” The