Washington friends kayak Chestnut Street during heavy rain Sunday
Courtesy of Cody Hillberry
Friends Cody Hillberry, Derick Puskarich and Angelica Brough, all of Washington, kayaked on West Chestnut Street outside Washington Sunday.
Courtesy of Cody Hillberry
Friends Cody Hillberry, Derick Puskarich and Angelica Brough, all of Washington, kayaked on West Chestnut Street outside Washington Sunday.
Washington residents are all too familiar with what happens on West Chestnut Street when there’s heavy rain.
Cody Hillberry told himself the next time it floods, he’s going to get out his kayak.
On Sunday, he did just that, and photos and videos of he and his friends traversing the “rapids” in front of Rite Aid and Denny’s on the township line between North Franklin and Canton quickly flooded social media.
Hillberry said he and Justin Johnson had the initial idea, and friends Derick Puskarich and Angelica Brough joined in.
All Washington residents, they’re all too familiar with the street’s frequent flooding.
“To anyone who wants to know, at its deepest it seems the water is roughly 18 inches deep,” Hillberry posted on his Facebook page. “To anyone who thinks we’re idiots, we wanted to put smiles on a few faces today and from the looks of things and the response we got, I think we succeeded. We even had permits, life jackets and whistles … I hope everyone is able to find some joy on this gloomy day! Make the best of your surroundings.”
Hillberry said complaints of flooding in the area are common, and justly so, but he wanted to make light of the situation, as well as bring some awareness to the problem.
So Johnson loaded their kayaks in the back of his truck and off they went. Hillberry said they weren’t expecting much of a reaction, but knew it was likely someone would surreptitiously snap a photo. But as they kayaked, people were smiling, waving and giving them thumbs up. Some even pulled into nearby parking lots to snap pictures. It seemed to really spread happiness on an otherwise gloomy day.
“I’m glad we did it,” Hillberry said.
It’s not something Hillberry would advise people copycat, though. He said just as they were wrapping up their 45-minute excursion, police officers showed up and told the group their activity wasn’t such a good idea.
“You probably shouldn’t be able to kayak,” he said, adding it “smelled kinda bad. Chestnut makes a much better road than a rafting attraction.”