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Andover: A storm that dumped up to two months of rain in two days in Vermont and other parts of the Northeast caused more flooding Tuesday for communities that included the state capital, where officials said river levels at the upstream dam appeared to be stable. .
Muddy, brown waters from the Winooski River on Tuesday flowed through the capital, Montpelier, obscuring vehicles and all but the tops of parking lots along picturesque streets lined with brick storefronts that flooded basements and basements. Some residents of the city of 8,000 made their way through the waist-deep water. Others canoeed and rowed along the main streets to survey the scene. Store owners stocked damaged or lost merchandise.
Montpelier town manager Bill Fraser said the dam remains an ongoing concern, but the city has been shifting into recovery mode, with water receding and public works personnel expected Wednesday morning to begin clearing mud and debris from downtown streets. Building inspections will begin when businesses begin cleaning up their properties.
“The dam has not spilled. The water in the dam is still high but it has settled. We feel that the water that goes over the dam’s downstream does not pose an imminent threat,” Fraser said. “Looks like it won’t get hacked. That’s fine. That’s one less thing we should have on the front burner.”
There were other signs of hope as Vermont’s rivers crested and floodwaters receded, allowing officials to begin assessing the damage and scope of future cleanup. The flood has already caused tens of millions of dollars in damage across the state.
“It’s heartbreaking because you know that all of these companies are losing stock, and apparently this guy just lost his car,” Sen. Ann Watson said, referring to a parked car that was flooded in Montpelier. Similar scenes played out in neighboring Barre and in Bridgewater, where the Ottauquechee River spilled its banks.
Brian Pfeiffer, a biologist who has lived in the Montpelier area for four decades, walked around the downtown area checking for damage and was horrified by what he saw. The basements of every building—including the one where he worked—and the basements of most buildings were flooded. Even the city’s fire station was flooded.
“It’s really annoying when your fire station is flooded,” said Pfeiffer.
Vermont Gov. Phil Scott said floodwaters exceeded the levels seen during Tropical Storm Irene. Erin It killed six people in Vermont in August 2011, washed homes off their foundations and damaged or destroyed more than 200 bridges and 500 miles (805 kilometers) of highways.
The sun had set on Tuesday and more sunshine was expected on Wednesday. More rain was expected Thursday and Friday, but Peter Panacos, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service, said the state will avoid any more downpours.
“We’ve been catastrophically damaged. We’ve already borne the brunt of the storm,” said Brendan McNamara, the mayor of Ludlow, as he assessed the impact of the flooding around the city of 1,500 people.
“Today I spoke to people who said my house was gone. Thank God we got through it without loss of life,” he said, adding that the damage was worse than Tropical Storm Irene. “Ludlow will be fine. People get together and take care of each other. We’ve been here before and we’ll get through it.”
Among the losses was the town’s water treatment plant. Its main supermarket remained closed. The main road through town has not yet fully reopened and McNamara could not begin to estimate the number of homes that were damaged. The town’s Little League stadium and a new skate park were destroyed, and many businesses were damaged.
Colleen Dooley returned to her apartment complex in Ludlow on Tuesday to find the ground covered in silt and mud and the pond full of muddy river water. Flood waters carried the pool’s wooden platform for 300 feet (100 m). The nearby Black River was still raging.
“I don’t know when we’ll be back, but it’s definitely going to be awhile,” said Dooley, a 59-year-old retired teacher.
One woman swept away New York on monday. Vermont Emergency Management said Tuesday there have been no reports of flood-related injuries or deaths in Vermont, as fast water rescue teams assisted by National Guard helicopter crews have conducted more than 100 rescues.
That includes a “high-risk rescue” by a visiting team from New Hampshire of someone who decided to drive around a gravel road, said Mike Cannon of Vermont Urban Search and Rescue. “The car almost drifted off the road into the river,” he said.
Dozens of roads and highways have been closed, including many along the backbone of the Green Mountains. Flood alerts and alerts were lower than they were on Monday, with most of them concentrated in the north of the state. Road crews removed debris on Tuesday, reopening Interstate 89 as it follows the Winooski River between Montpelier and Middlesex.
The slow-moving storm reached New England after hitting parts of New York and Connecticut on Sunday. Some communities received between 7 and 9 inches (18 cm and 23 cm) of rain. Towns in southwestern New Hampshire have been hit with heavy flooding and road washes, and the Connecticut River is expected to reach peak flood stage Wednesday in Hartford and towns to the south.
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administrator Richard Spinrad said Tuesday that 13.7 million people received inland flood warnings on Tuesday. Atmospheric scientists say devastating flood events are occurring more frequently as storms form in a warmer atmosphere, and that a warming planet will only make it worse.
President Joe Biden, while attending the annual NATO summit in Lithuania, declared a state of emergency in Vermont and authorized the Federal Emergency Management Agency to help coordinate disaster relief efforts and provide assistance. He also spoke with Governor and Senator Bernie Sanders.
FEMA has sent a team to Vermont, along with emergency communications equipment, and is ready to provide shelters if the state requests it. Regional spokesman Dennis Pinkham said Tuesday that the agency is also monitoring flooding in Massachusetts, Connecticut and New Hampshire.
One of the hardest hit places was New York’s Hudson Valley, where a woman identified by police as Pamela Nugent, 43, died while trying to flee her flooded home with her dog in the village of Fort Montgomery.
The United States Military Academy at West Point was hit by more than 8 inches (20 cm) of rain that caused debris to slide off some roads and wash away others.
Several rescue crews were stationed in Montpellier, dispatches, police and firefighters were taken to the water treatment plant after heavy flooding at City Hall and the police and fire departments. Police Chief Eric Nordenson said the radio towers they use for emergency calls were not working.
Shelters have been set up in churches, town halls and Barre town hall, where getting food to the more than 200 people who have sought refuge there – including those forced to evacuate from two homeless shelters in the area – has been a challenge.
“We’re trying to find ways to get supplies to them,” said John Montes, the American Red Cross regional disaster officer for northern New England.
Muddy, brown waters from the Winooski River on Tuesday flowed through the capital, Montpelier, obscuring vehicles and all but the tops of parking lots along picturesque streets lined with brick storefronts that flooded basements and basements. Some residents of the city of 8,000 made their way through the waist-deep water. Others canoeed and rowed along the main streets to survey the scene. Store owners stocked damaged or lost merchandise.
Montpelier town manager Bill Fraser said the dam remains an ongoing concern, but the city has been shifting into recovery mode, with water receding and public works personnel expected Wednesday morning to begin clearing mud and debris from downtown streets. Building inspections will begin when businesses begin cleaning up their properties.
“The dam has not spilled. The water in the dam is still high but it has settled. We feel that the water that goes over the dam’s downstream does not pose an imminent threat,” Fraser said. “Looks like it won’t get hacked. That’s fine. That’s one less thing we should have on the front burner.”
There were other signs of hope as Vermont’s rivers crested and floodwaters receded, allowing officials to begin assessing the damage and scope of future cleanup. The flood has already caused tens of millions of dollars in damage across the state.
“It’s heartbreaking because you know that all of these companies are losing stock, and apparently this guy just lost his car,” Sen. Ann Watson said, referring to a parked car that was flooded in Montpelier. Similar scenes played out in neighboring Barre and in Bridgewater, where the Ottauquechee River spilled its banks.
Brian Pfeiffer, a biologist who has lived in the Montpelier area for four decades, walked around the downtown area checking for damage and was horrified by what he saw. The basements of every building—including the one where he worked—and the basements of most buildings were flooded. Even the city’s fire station was flooded.
“It’s really annoying when your fire station is flooded,” said Pfeiffer.
Vermont Gov. Phil Scott said floodwaters exceeded the levels seen during Tropical Storm Irene. Erin It killed six people in Vermont in August 2011, washed homes off their foundations and damaged or destroyed more than 200 bridges and 500 miles (805 kilometers) of highways.
The sun had set on Tuesday and more sunshine was expected on Wednesday. More rain was expected Thursday and Friday, but Peter Panacos, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service, said the state will avoid any more downpours.
“We’ve been catastrophically damaged. We’ve already borne the brunt of the storm,” said Brendan McNamara, the mayor of Ludlow, as he assessed the impact of the flooding around the city of 1,500 people.
“Today I spoke to people who said my house was gone. Thank God we got through it without loss of life,” he said, adding that the damage was worse than Tropical Storm Irene. “Ludlow will be fine. People get together and take care of each other. We’ve been here before and we’ll get through it.”
Among the losses was the town’s water treatment plant. Its main supermarket remained closed. The main road through town has not yet fully reopened and McNamara could not begin to estimate the number of homes that were damaged. The town’s Little League stadium and a new skate park were destroyed, and many businesses were damaged.
Colleen Dooley returned to her apartment complex in Ludlow on Tuesday to find the ground covered in silt and mud and the pond full of muddy river water. Flood waters carried the pool’s wooden platform for 300 feet (100 m). The nearby Black River was still raging.
“I don’t know when we’ll be back, but it’s definitely going to be awhile,” said Dooley, a 59-year-old retired teacher.
One woman swept away New York on monday. Vermont Emergency Management said Tuesday there have been no reports of flood-related injuries or deaths in Vermont, as fast water rescue teams assisted by National Guard helicopter crews have conducted more than 100 rescues.
That includes a “high-risk rescue” by a visiting team from New Hampshire of someone who decided to drive around a gravel road, said Mike Cannon of Vermont Urban Search and Rescue. “The car almost drifted off the road into the river,” he said.
Dozens of roads and highways have been closed, including many along the backbone of the Green Mountains. Flood alerts and alerts were lower than they were on Monday, with most of them concentrated in the north of the state. Road crews removed debris on Tuesday, reopening Interstate 89 as it follows the Winooski River between Montpelier and Middlesex.
The slow-moving storm reached New England after hitting parts of New York and Connecticut on Sunday. Some communities received between 7 and 9 inches (18 cm and 23 cm) of rain. Towns in southwestern New Hampshire have been hit with heavy flooding and road washes, and the Connecticut River is expected to reach peak flood stage Wednesday in Hartford and towns to the south.
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administrator Richard Spinrad said Tuesday that 13.7 million people received inland flood warnings on Tuesday. Atmospheric scientists say devastating flood events are occurring more frequently as storms form in a warmer atmosphere, and that a warming planet will only make it worse.
President Joe Biden, while attending the annual NATO summit in Lithuania, declared a state of emergency in Vermont and authorized the Federal Emergency Management Agency to help coordinate disaster relief efforts and provide assistance. He also spoke with Governor and Senator Bernie Sanders.
FEMA has sent a team to Vermont, along with emergency communications equipment, and is ready to provide shelters if the state requests it. Regional spokesman Dennis Pinkham said Tuesday that the agency is also monitoring flooding in Massachusetts, Connecticut and New Hampshire.
One of the hardest hit places was New York’s Hudson Valley, where a woman identified by police as Pamela Nugent, 43, died while trying to flee her flooded home with her dog in the village of Fort Montgomery.
The United States Military Academy at West Point was hit by more than 8 inches (20 cm) of rain that caused debris to slide off some roads and wash away others.
Several rescue crews were stationed in Montpellier, dispatches, police and firefighters were taken to the water treatment plant after heavy flooding at City Hall and the police and fire departments. Police Chief Eric Nordenson said the radio towers they use for emergency calls were not working.
Shelters have been set up in churches, town halls and Barre town hall, where getting food to the more than 200 people who have sought refuge there – including those forced to evacuate from two homeless shelters in the area – has been a challenge.
“We’re trying to find ways to get supplies to them,” said John Montes, the American Red Cross regional disaster officer for northern New England.
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