Vermont man drowns at home as flooding claims first victim with more rain predicted – news

The towns of Londonderry and Weston remained largely inaccessible on Wednesday

Devastating floods batter Vermont as water levels continue to rise

Vermont authorities confirmed the first flood-related death following catastrophic rain on Wednesday.

Some 117 rescues were made in Vermont as the towns of Londonderry and Weston remained largely inaccessible. Officials were beginning to assess how many homes had been destroyed and what the financial cost would be from damaged roads, bridges and railways.

Vermont Emergency Management confirmed on Thursday that 63-year-old Stephen Davoll died as a result of a drowning incident in his home on Wednesday. It is the first death linked to the historic floodings in the state.

New York Governor Kathy Hochul declared the floodings a “1-in-1,000-year weather event” caused by the climate crisis, after a woman died in the Empire State when she was swept away while trying to escape her home with her dog.

Vermont Governor Phil Scott said at a news conference that thunderstorms were expected to move into parts of the state by Thursday night, which could cause more flash flooding.

“The period we are more concerned about is Sunday because that could be more widespread and heavier, but not nearly on the scale of what we saw earlier in the week,” National Weather Service meteorologist Seth Kutikoff also said.

Key Points

• Travel disrupted as 13 million people in the US north-east under flood alert
• One killed, 50 rescued so far as US northeast faces extreme downpour and flooding
• Governor says Vermont downpour 'worse than Irene'

[13 July 2023 23:17 · Andrea Blanco]

First flood-related death in Vermont confirmed

Vermont Emergency Management confirmed on Thursday that 63-year-old Stephen Davoll died as a result of a drowning incident in his home on Wednesday. It is the first death linked to the historic floodings in the state.

In Vermont, communities were cleaning up from the floods that were more destructive in some places than 2011’s Tropical Storm Irene and regarded as the worst natural disaster since the 1927 floods, which killed dozens of people and caused widespread destruction.

Officials were beginning to assess how many homes had been destroyed and what the financial cost would be from damaged roads, bridges and railways.

[13 July 2023 23:30 · Andrea Blanco]

Vermont braces for more rain in wake of historic flooding

Vermont prepared for the next round of storms — and possibly a tornado — as people took advantage of calm weather Thursday to clean up from historic flooding that damaged thousands of homes, businesses and roads, and left some residents stranded.

As floodwaters receded, the good news was that there were no new rescue missions, dams were holding up and more roads reopened.

The bad news was that strong thunderstorms were expected to move into parts of the state by Thursday night, which could cause more flash flooding, Gov. Phil Scott said at a news conference. Conditions could spawn a tornado, he said. And the state could get more heavy rain over the weekend.

[14 July 2023 00:00 · Andrea Blanco]

WATCH: Drone footage shows Vermont town underwater

[14 July 2023 01:00 · Andrea Blanco]

Vermont’s catastrophic flooding is visible from space

Vermont is beginning the long and gruelling clean-up from catastrophic flooding this week – the scale of which is so vast that it can be seen from space.

The Green Mountain State wasn’t alone: other Northeastern states are facing their own expensive recoveries from major, slow-moving storms which dumped months of rain on the region in a matter of days.

The Independent’s Louise Boyle has more:

[14 July 2023 02:00 · Andrea Blanco]

VOICES: Vermont floods prove that there’s no place to hide from the climate crisis

“Nature and climate change will always be one step ahead of us,” writes David Calloway, founder of Callaway Climate Insights.

[14 July 2023 03:00 · Andrea Blanco]

Vermont slowly turns to recovery after being hit by flood from slow-moving storm

Floodwaters receded in Vermont cities and towns pummeled by a storm that delivered two months of rain in two days, allowing officials to focus on recovering from a disaster that trapped residents in homes, closed roadways and choked streets and businesses with mud and debris.

In the capital city of Montpelier, where streets were flooded Tuesday by the swollen Winooski River, officials said that water levels at a dam just upstream appeared to be stable.

“It looks like it won’t breach. That is good. That is one less thing we have to have on our front burner,” Montpelier Town Manager Bill Fraser said.

Fraser said the dam remains a lingering concern but with the water receding the city was shifting to recovery mode. Public works employees were expected out Wednesday to start removing mud and debris downtown and building inspections will start as businesses begin cleaning up their properties.

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 centimeters and 23 centimeters) of rain. Towns in southwest New Hampshire had heavy flooding and road washouts, and the Connecticut River was expected to crest above flood stage Wednesday in Hartford and towns to the south.

AP

[14 July 2023 04:00 · Andrea Blanco]

WATCH: Vermont Governor Phil Scott calls flooding 'historic' and vows to clean up damage

[14 July 2023 05:00 · Andrea Blanco]

Vermont residents clean up from historic flooding

Northeast Flooding (Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

Northeast Flooding (Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

Northeast Flooding (Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

[14 July 2023 06:00 · Andrea Blanco]

People return to devastated houses after water recedes

Residents in Vermont are returning home to find their houses and belongings damaged after severe flooding left the capital city Montpelier as a swirling, brown waterway.

One resident posted a video of their front yard with the entry door blocked with mud and stones and car stuck.

[14 July 2023 08:00 · Andrea Blanco]

Woman died in New York as she tried to escape flooding

One death in New York was blamed on the storm — a woman whose body was found after she was swept away in Fort Montgomery, a small Hudson River community about 45 miles north of New York City.

Gov Phil Scott said he planned to submit a request for a major disaster declaration to President Joe Biden. “It’s separate from, and in addition to, the federal emergency declaration the president already signed” on Tuesday, he said. If approved, the declaration would provide federal support for recovering communities.

In Vermont’s small state capital of Montpelier, where the swollen Winooski River had flooded downtown, the elevator at City Hall was damaged, making the building inaccessible, spokesperson Evelyn Prim said.

“Cleanup from the hazardous floodwater damage in City Hall is expected to take several months. Because of this, City Hall will be closing until further notice,” she said.

AP