The cloudburst and flash flood of July 1935 came after a five day heat wave. Some scattered showers occurred July 7; July 8 brought thunder storms and slight flooding; by nightfall of July 8 nearly four inches of rain had fallen. Overnight came the cloudburst during which Ithaca measured 9 1/2 inches of rain. Cayuga Lake rose 4 1/2 inches. All the creeks flowing into the lake became raging torrents. At Portland Point water was 10 feet deep. Four people were drowned when the bridge they were standing on in Myers was swept away. The last big flood in this area was in 1972. Because Cayuga Lake is the reservoir of the lakes to the west, it remained at a high flood stage for six weeks. There was a shortage of pumps to pump out basements of the cottages along the lake. When a new shipment of pumps came into the Ithaca Agway store, they were sold right off the truck.
