Water Damage Restoration in Allentown, PA — What You Need to Know

Allentown is Lehigh County’s largest city and contains some of the most water-damage-vulnerable housing in the Lehigh Valley. Jordan Creek — which runs through the heart of Allentown — has flooded repeatedly, most severely during Hurricane Ida in September 2021, when the creek overtopped its banks in Allentown neighborhoods and caused widespread basement flooding across the West End and Cedar Creek areas. Lower-lying sections of South Allentown along the creek corridor remain in FEMA-designated Special Flood Hazard Areas.

Allentown’s housing stock is heavily weighted toward pre-1960 construction — row homes and semi-detached houses with aging plumbing, deteriorated basement waterproofing, and sewer laterals that connect to the city’s combined sewer system. During heavy rain events, the combined system routinely exceeds capacity, driving sewage backup into basement floor drains across the older sections of the city. This is Category 3 (black water) and requires professional remediation — it cannot be addressed with household cleaning products.

The city’s age also means that many Allentown homes have asbestos-containing materials in floor tiles, pipe insulation, and drywall joint compound. Water damage restoration that requires demolition in pre-1978 homes must assess for these materials before demo begins. Lehigh Valley Restoration follows EPA RRP protocols for all pre-1978 residential work in Allentown.