One time back in the 60's we went through there ad she showed us around, courthouse, old school, out to the falls and the big victorian that overlooked the railyards that her dad ran. Very pretty hills.
PotomacNews.com
Feb 24, 2003
http://www.potomacnews.com/frontpage/MGB7XQKZJCD.html
Dam rumors spark fear
BY KEITH WALKER
kwalker@potomacnews.com
The only thing flooding the Town of Occoquan on Sunday was a steady stream of sightseers who came to watch the river after hearing that the dam holding back the Occoquan Reservoir was in imminent danger of collapse.
"The dam was never in danger of failing," said 1st Sgt. Bud Dulaney, Prince William police.
Dulaney said the officials activated the Emergency Operations Plan, just in case they needed to evacuate the town, but the river crested at about 11:30 a.m. Sunday and steadily ebbed for the rest of the afternoon.
Thus went the flood that wasn't.
Rumor around the town was that a dam operator, employed by the Fairfax County Water Authority, mistakenly called the emergency.
"I think things just got a little misconstrued this morning," said a Fairfax County Water Authority workman who stopped on Mill Street in his white utility truck to talk to Sgt. W.A. Watson of the Occoquan Police Department.
Prince William County spokeswoman Liz Bahrns said someone was premature in reporting that there was a problem.
"We got the report and went down there and made a visual inspection of the dam and everything was fine," Bahrns said.
Watson said he was out on the streets of Occoquan on Sunday morning and first heard the dam rumor when people started showing up and asking questions.
"There's really nothing to see," Watson said Sunday afternoon, as he directed a car to the foot path at the end of Mill street.
"But rather than try to stop them, I've been letting them drive down and turn around and come back," he said.
Watson said the Occoquan River didn't look all that high to him.
"This is about normal for this time of year with all the rain and snow we've been having," Watson said.
Although the river was a turbulent, roiling brown rush of water Sunday as it sped past the town, Barbara Mercado said she wasn't worried about the Occoquan breaching its banks.
"I'm from New York, I'm not afraid of anything," said Mercado, who currently lives in Dumfries.
"I just watched so I could move my car in case something happened. I didn't want my car floating down the river," said Mercado, the manager of Rocking Horse Classics, a shop in Occoquan.
Mercado said she thought the broadcast media may have generated to some of the initial excitement.
"Channel five and channel nine were here. They were here freaking out this morning," she said.
Shirley McDonald, owner of the Strawberry Patch, said she's been watching the Occoquan River for at least 30 years and wasn't concerned about flooding Sunday.
"I know the water was going swiftly, but I never thought we were going to see caskets floating down the river like we did when Agnes hit," McDonald said, remembering the hurricane that flooded the Occoquan River in 1972 and deposited boats as far away as Lake Ridge.
McDonald said if she thought the river was about to flood, she would have been out of town.
"I would be out that front door and heading for high ground," she said.
Another Virginian here.
The Shenandoah River is VERY high as well. I'm at the bottom of "FEMA Hill" here in Bluemont, VA and want to report that Rte 606 off Route 7 West is CLOSED. Rte 606 runs along side the River here for about 4 miles. Bluemont is about equidistant between Leesburg and Winchester.
And that's what's happening where I'm at :)
Prayers going up for those in the danger zones.