You can see three of them in the picture above. (That white building on the right is Tek's daycare.) You can also take note of how many there are in the nearby alley shown in this video.
They work pretty well when it rains hard. Underneath both sides of the street (what one might charitably call the "sidewalks") are basically just giant tunnels for flowing water.
So it's pretty baffling to me that so many residents and shop-keepers deliberately block up the storm drains in front of their buildings.
Three in a row are blocked in the above picture; it's the same street as in the first picture, just a bit farther down the block. All sorts of things are used to block the drains, including welcome mats and old carpet scraps, but the most popular object seems to be automobile floor mats.
The result is predictable.
I guess they want it this way. But why?
Update (April 19): Erma's mother says the drains are covered to block the unpleasant smells that emanate, especially in summer.
I've been plotting a drain post of my own! Taking photos and everything. It will come.
ReplyDeleteRemember hanging out on the deck of the Washington St. apartment, watching a neighbor try to channel the floods into a drain?
I'm looking forward to reading it.
ReplyDeleteI don't remember that at all!