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Creek Flooding Forces Evacuations In Burlington County

By Cleve Bryan

LUMBERTON, N.J., (CBS) -- Swift-moving waters pour past the 11-foot flood marker at the Rancocas Creek.

In Lumberton Township dozens of properties are flooded and about 40 homeowners were asked to voluntarily evacuate.

"It just came up, once it started coming by the bridge it just filled up the yard, filled up real quick,"  Aaron King of Lumberton Township said.

On Main Street Aaron King peered into his grandparent's water-filled garage. They were able to save the cars, but not the basement.

"About five or six feet of water in the basement there and everything is ruined. The washer and dryer is flipped upside down," King said.

police had a single rescue early in the morning and residents say an alarm went off around 2 am.

"When I heard the sirens go off I got up and checked where the water was," John Phelan of Lumberton Township said.

As people waded through downtown in pairs to stay safe,  Mike Walker had to turn to a rescue line to get to his niece's house on Bridge Road.  The Rancocas turned her home into an island with rapids in the front yard.

"Super dangerous zone here and I wouldn't be walking through it without a rope around you," Walker said.

Walker says despite the scary scene outside the house only has about three feet of water in the basement.

"She's happy to be alive. The rain has stopped and that's a good thing," Walker said.

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