Spared Again: North Andover Evades Massive Floods

North Andover residents braced themselves for potential flooding Tuesday morning. But the rain went relatively easy on the town for the most part.

"We've seen localized problems," Director Bruce Thibodeau said. "A couple people had flooding here and there."

There was traffic backed up in some areas Tuesday morning during the morning commute, including Main Street and Waverly Road. And there were leaves caught up in catch basins. But there were no roads closed and no major car accidents.

The Merrimack and Shawsheen rivers are not expected to flood, either, Thibodeau said, because that usually happens in the spring when snow melts from the north and overflows the rivers.

Tuesday's flooding in nearby communities and the flood watch issued for North Andover were reminiscent of an all-too-recent memory -- the May 2006 flood that caused millions of dollars in damage and left several businesses paralyzed for months.

"I think we’re lucky," Thibodeau said.

This is the second weather reprieve North Andover has gotten recently. Hurricane Irene, which left millions without power and threatened to pound North Andover,

Elsewhere in Essex County, communities weren't as fortunate Tuesday. Salem, Peabody, Swampscott and other parts of the North Shore were pummeled so heavily by the rains that flash floods left cars virtually underwater.