How big are the storm sewers in the city? Why didn't they keep the streets from flooding?

I asked our Public Works Director, Dan Jensen what size storm can our storm sewers handle, and he told me that the construction standard is to size for a 10 year flood. Sizing for a 100 year flood would require at least 10 times larger stormwater pipes, and this is cost prohibitive. Remember that the recent flooding was 3 feet over the 100 year flood stage, and 2 feet over the previous record for Columbus. This was an extraordinary event.

You can take some precautions to help prevent or reduce flooding in your home.

• Make sure that you have a check valve in your basement to allow water to exit the drain but not come back in.
• All sump pumps must be set up so that water goes into the storm water system or onto your yard. Sump pumps that are attached to the sanitary sewer are illegal and overtax the sanitary sewer system during heavy rains resulting in sewage back up.
• Landscape your yard to move water away from your basement to reduce the amount of seepage that you get.