AHOSKIE – Hurricane Irene is still dumping heavy rain over the Roanoke-Chowan area. That fact is evident with water level rising rapidly in the Ahoskie Creek.

As of 3:30 p.m. Saturday, the Ahoskie Creek reporting site at the NC 42 bridge was showing a level of 10.07 feet. It was at 9.75 feet as of 1 p.m.

In comparison, the Ahoskie Creek crested at 17.32 feet following the flooding rains of Hurricane Floyd in September of 1999. That amount of water completely inundated the residential area along west Memorial Drive, Lakeview Drive and Edgewood Circle, eventually leading to those homes being purchased by FEMA. The area is now the home of the Ahoskie Creek Recreational Complex.

In October of last year, heavy rains flooded the creek again. It later crested at 14.71 feet.

On Friday, the water level in the Ahoskie Creek was 2 feet.