A sudden burst of heavy rainfall Wednesday evening led to flooded roads, stranded drivers, and water inside businesses across Genesee County.

Approximately three to four inches of rain fell in less than two hours time, washing over several intersections, including Saginaw and Hemphill roads in Burton as well as Atherton and VanSlyke roads on Flint’s west side.

Flint residents Charlie Pearce and Felicia Ostrander helped pull out a few residents from the shin-high waters on Hemphill after viewing live video of the flooding on Facebook.

“That’s right down the road. Let’s go check it out,” recalled Pearce. “Let’s be nice and pull a couple people out, get the good deed for the month out of the way.”

Nancy Dixon was heading home after work from the Fenton Road Taco Bell when her car stalled out on Hemphill, with Pearce and Ostrander coming to her rescue.

“I should have taken the expressway,” she said aloud, as the rain fell. “One thing is I got nice people to help me. I got to meet nice people today.”

    

    

Water pushed its way into the bar, with patrons noting it’s not the first time drains in the area have become overrun during a large rain event.

Liz Trudeau, plant communication manager for General Motors, said a small amount of water breached the Flint Assembly Plant on VanSlyke Road.

Production was not interrupted, Trudeau said, and third-shift workers were still able to make it in for work.

However, some vehicle drivings in the surrounding area had their vehicles stall out while attempting to make it through the flood water.

    

Entrice Mitchell, a city of Flint sewer department employee, was on scene unclogging multiple drains.

“We’ve been all over, getting sewer backups, getting this,” he commented as cars and trucks plowed down the road. “We haven’t seen this in a while.”