CHENANGO COUNTY – Even though buffeted by the same heavy rains and high winds which ravaged the rest of the region, Chenango was largely spared from Irene’s wrath.

“I think we’re pretty fortunate,” said Chenango County Emergency Management Director Matthew Beckwith.

According to Beckwith, radar reports indicate the tropical storm system dropped close to 4 inches of rain over much of Chenango, with some localized areas receiving up to an inch more.

“There was a big band that came right down Route 12,” he said.

That rain – coupled with sustained winds of 17 and 22 miles per hour gusting up to 40 – downed trees and power lines around the county. Remarkably, however, there were no reports of flooding in Chenango.

“The rivers were rising, but they just leveled off,” said Beckwith, who spent much of Sunday afternoon in the county’s Emergency Operations Center with representatives from other agencies.

Other counties – including neighboring Delaware and Broome – weren’t as lucky.

“I can tell you the ground was dry. That’s what soaked up a lot of the water here,” Beckwith said. “It was nothing like it was in June.”