During the night of July 1st, the area south of Monroeville known as Pitcairn was hit with a terrible wave of flooding that blew out doors, sent vehicles swimming down a creek-transformed-into-a-river, pushed houses off their foundations, flooded homes in minutes and swept Joseph Vagnier, a young firefighter, under a truck in a mess of vehicles on Route 48.

The Red Cross was able to open an emergency shelter at the Park Building on Broadway Avenue. Nearly 20 people spent the night there.

The 104-year old borough of Pitcairn, filled with 4,087 residents lies south of Monroeville along Route 130. Six months ago, Pitcairn officials told their larger neighbor that they were concerned by the runoff into Dirty Camp Run, a feeder stream of Turtle Creek. Usually no wider than 14 feet and about a knee deep this time of year, the stream transformed into a havoc-wreaking sluice after a thunderstorm shed its torrential waters over the area. Another little stream that parallels Route 48 from Monroeville toward Pitcairn also spilled from its banks.

All told, the damage from a storm that dumped 4 inches of rain in a mere 90 minutes is estimated at $10 million, with 262 homes and three businesses affected and 13 structures moved off their foundations. So severe was the damage, that a state of emergency was declared for residents in the flood area. The young fireman, Vagnier -- once in critical condition at Allegheny General Hospital -- tragically passed away a couple of days later as a result of his injuries.

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