At Schenectady, just west of the Hudson on the Mohawk, houses on twenty-five streets were abandoned by their occupants. The entire lower section of the city was submerged.
The whole Mohawk Valley was swept by the worst flood in its history.
The Groff dam near Herkimer broke and several houses were carried away. A dam at Canajoharie threatened to go out. Three great canal gates at Fort Plain were swept away. The Amsterdam reservoir, which covers 680 acres, was weakened and a patrol was stationed there.
So great was the flood in Troy, on the Hudson below the entrance of the Mohawk, that martial law was practically declared. Members of two military companies patrolled the streets, relieving the tired firemen and police, many of whom had been on continuous duty for forty-eight hours. Mayor Burns did not sleep for two nights, taking charge in person of the Public Safety Department.
Fires added to the seriousness of the flood situation and firemen were kept busy all day answering alarms in the flooded district. Damage estimated at thousands of dollars was done by the fire.
For the first time in the history of Troy the newspapers, with one exception, were unable to go to press. One publication printed a four-page pamphlet on a hand press. Another was printed in Albany.
Hundreds of families were rendered homeless, and relief stations in various parts of the city were filled with refugees. The city faced an epidemic of typhoid, and every effort was made to guard against it.
In Watervliet the water in many places measured ten feet deep and the police station and post-office were flooded. One-third of Green Island was submerged. In Rensselaer, across the river from Albany, much damage and suffering were caused.
The losses of logs in the regions to the north amounted to many thousands of dollars and the damage in the lumber district of Albany was heavy.
On March 27th the river at Albany was seventeen feet above normal and was still rising. The power plants were put out of commission, street car traffic practically suspended and schools and factories closed. The city's filtration plant was threatened. The south end of the city was under water.
Railroad service was crippled, mails delayed and telegraph and telephone service hampered. There was much damage to property, but no loss of life.