Battling the water with two pumps in Billerica

By Martin Finucane, Globe Staff

A Billerica woman whose house became an island when it was surrounded by rising water from the Shawsheen River says the water is receding today and it's a big relief.

"It's come down a wicked lot," said Jean Auchterlonie, a resident of Riverside Drive.

She said her husband, Peter, has two pumps running to pump out the seven feet of water in the cellar, and she hoped to have electricity and heat back in the house by Thursday, at the latest.

Auchterlonie was shown on the front of today's Globe with her dog, Jazz, crossing a makeshift plank bridge to dry land.

The dog hasn't been perturbed by the flooding. "She's doing great, actually. She goes with the flow," said Auchterlonie.