Similar scenes played out in neighboring Barre and in Bridgewater, where the Ottauquechee River spilled its banks.
Vermont Gov. Phil Scott said floodwaters surpassed levels seen during Tropical Storm Irene. Irene killed six people in Vermont in August 2011, washing homes off their foundations and damaging or destroying more than 200 bridges and 500 miles of highway.
The flooding has already caused tens of millions of dollars in damage throughout the state. There have been no reports of injuries or deaths related to the flooding in Vermont, where swift-water rescue teams aided by National Guard helicopter crews performed more than 100 rescues, Vermont Emergency Management said Tuesday.
One of the worst-hit places was New York’s Hudson Valley, where a woman identified by police as Pamela Nugent, 43, died as she tried to escape her flooded home with her dog in the hamlet of Fort Montgomery.
Atmospheric scientists say destructive flooding events happen more frequently as storms form in a warmer atmosphere, and the planet’s rising temperatures will only make it worse.
In Vermont, more rain was forecast Thursday and Friday, but Peter Banacos, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service, said the state will be spared any further torrential downpours.
Much of the focus turned to reopening roadways, checking on isolated homeowners and cleaning out mud and debris from water-logged businesses.
“We sustained catastrophic damage. We just really took the brunt of the storm,” Ludlow Municipal Manager Brendan McNamara said as he assessed the flood’s impact around the town of 1,500 people.
Among the losses was the town’s water treatment plant. Its main supermarket remained closed. The main roadway through town had yet to be fully reopened and McNamara couldn’t begin to estimate how many houses had been damaged. The town’s Little League field and a new skate park were destroyed, and scores of businesses were damaged.
“Thankfully we got through it with no loss of life,” McNamara said. “Ludlow will be fine. People are coming together and taking care of each other.”
Colleen Dooley returned to her condominium complex in Ludlow on Tuesday to find the grounds covered in silt and mud and the pool filled with muddy river water.
“I don’t know when we’ll move back, but it will certainly be awhile,” said Dooley, a retired teacher.
President Joe Biden, attending the annual NATO summit in Lithuania, declared an emergency for Vermont and authorized the Federal Emergency Management Agency to help coordinate disaster relief efforts and provide assistance.
Source: | This article originally belongs to Nbcnews.com
