FREDERICK, Md. — A day after the remnants of Hurricane Ida brought heavy rain and flash flooding to the region, some areas along the Monocacy River were inundated with feet of water as large amounts of rainfall headed downstream.
Storms brought several inches of rain to parts of Frederick County and the excess rainfall now must travel through the Monocacy River to get to the Potomac River and ultimately the Atlantic Ocean.
As a result, areas bordering the river that are mainly dry were instead covered by feet of water on Thursday.
At Riverside Center in Frederick, groups of onlookers stopped by throughout the day to take pictures and take in the scene of Riverside Park underwater.
Soccer goals and light poles were submerged in the evening during a time it would normally be welcoming teams for practice.
For Frederick County resident Barbara Collins, seeing the flooding brought plenty of concerns.
"Federick floods but this is really bad this time," she said. "It’s crazy and scary. That’s a park and it’s all completely covered.”
Almost ten miles away and downstream from the park, the Monocacy National Battlefield had to close some sections on Thursday due to flooding.
Outside Gambrill Mill, which was used as a field hospital by Union troops during the Civil War, feet of water covered the nearby parking lot and walking path.
Park ranger Jana McCabe told WUSA9 the level of flooding on Thursday was more than what is expected after a storm.
"Something like this I’d say we see every five to 10 years," she said. "This is flooding beyond what we normally see and what we normally adapt for.”
McCabe said the first floor of Gambrill Mill, where nonvaluable items are stored, was likely inundated with water.
However, until the flooding receded, she said there was little that anyone could do.
"During an event like this, we just try to keep people safe. People want to come and see what’s going on," she said. "We have to close areas because we don’t want people wading through you don’t know what in the water."
McCabe said the battlefield has had to adjust to climate change and more frequent flooding in recent years.
Gambrill Mill used to serve as the visitor center for the site, however, the threat of water led to staff moving to a facility on higher ground.
"Our visitor center that we built in 2007 is on one of the highest places in the battlefield. It’s well out of the flood plain," McCabe said. "For buildings that we construct now, we look at the location and we try to choose and design things to be resilient.”
Moving forward, Frederick County residents hoped the flood water would go down soon and get life back to normal.
"We’re waiting," McCabe said. "When the water recedes, we’ll be able to clean up and reopen.”
RELATED: NWS: Annapolis hit with EF-2 tornado