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| Downtown Montpelier last evening. |
The Vermont flooding relentlessly, cruelly kept getting worse and more widespread overnight. And it was beginning to abuse the same victims over and over again.
Now, every corner of the state is affected. As I feared, the heavy rain moved into the northwest corner of Vermont overnight, and that area is now under a flood warning. The little brook by my house in St. Albans that usually dries up in the summer is roaring through the culvert under my driveway.
That tiny brook is now big, brown, angry, with rocks rolling through. It's absolutely pouring outside my window. That roar of the rain and from that brook is a constant reminder of the big nightmare Vermont unfortunately faces this morning.
And to think any high water in northwestern parts of the state are the least of Vermont's problems today,
In central Vermont, the flooding was much worse than originally thought. That's the theme of this whole disaster. You think it's going to be bad, then it gets worse.
Both downtown Barre and Montpelier flooded. The news out of Montpelier is grim. The Winooski River in Montpelier crested early this morning at 20.8 feet. That's a foot higher than in Irene.
Or did it crest?
Early this morning, we got this dire missive from Montpelier City Manager William Fraser:
"The Wrightsville Dam has only 6 feet of storage capacity left. If water exceeds that capacity, the first spillway will release into the North Branch River. This has never happened since the dam was built, so there is no precedent for potential damage.....
Unfortunately, there are very few evacuation options remaining. People in at risk areas may wish to go to upper floors of their houses."
This flood is so bad the calvary can't come and rescue you. That's no slap at the extremely brave men and women out there working endlessly to save Vermont lives. It's just that this disaster is just overwhelming, to say the least.
Vermont Public reports that there have been at least 50 swift water rescues in Vermont so far. That's 50 lives saved.
Meanwhile, in neighboring Barre, the Barre Auditorium opened as an emergency shelter. Problem was, many roads were blocked, by flooding, so some people who needed that shelter couldn't reach it. By the way, there are no fewer than 13 emergency shelters set up across Vermont. I'm sure the need is there.
All this was happening as radar images at 5:30 a.m appeared to show rain in northwestern Vermont rotating back toward Montpelier and Barre. The downtowns of both cities are closed to the public until at least noon today.
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| Drone view of Montpelier this morning from Brandon Clemment @bcclemms |
Wrightsville Dam might have a big water release. In southern Vermont, two dams already have had to release water, adding to the destruction there, and re-flooding towns that were under water Monday.
Overnight, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers announced they were making "unprecedented" releases from Ball Mountain Dam in Jamaica and Townshend Dam in Townshend. The releases were scheduled for about dawn today, and will or are leading to renewed flooding in towns like Jamaica, Townshend, Brookline, Dummerston, Brattleboro and Vernon.
And Londonderry, which suffered some of the worst flood damage in the state on Monday.
This has been the "perfect storm" in the sense that the rainfall was concentrated over the Green Mountains from Canada to the Massachusetts border. This ensured that maximum runoff would happen for the whole length of the state, causing maximum damage.
Rainfall totals are astounding, and it still hasn't stopped raining in some areas. Plymouth had nine inches of rain. Mount Holly was close behind at 8.66 inches. It was just about as bad further north. Barre reported 7.8 inches. Morrsiville had 7 inches. Greensboro had just under that. Montpelier was up to 5.28 inches
Back in northern Vermont, I was in Montpelier and Waterbury watching the water rise Monday afternoon. At the time, it was almost a festive atmosphere in both downtown Montpelier and Waterbury. Mixed, of course with a strong tinge of nervousness as people marveled at the water. People did not yet know how serious the situation would get.
I got a bad feeling in my gut toward the end of my tour. So I decided at around 5 p.m. to leave Montpelier and head north on Interstate 89 to my St. Albans home, lest I get stranded overnight.
Always listen to your gut. Vermont State Police closed Interstate 89 northbound at 5:15 pm and southbound at 6:30 p.m. between Berlin and Middlesex. Apparently, most if not all of the cars still on the Interstate were able to escape, but a number of vehicles were stranded on the on ramps northbound and southbound in Montpelier.
They weren't in danger of getting caught in flood water, but as of late last night, was figuring out what to do about the situation. The people in those cars were undoubtedly there for hours. This is yet an unprecedented emergency in Vermont. They don't close Interstates like this in Vermont. Until now.
I understand at least part of the Interstate is re-opened this morning, but check ahead.
I was doom scrolling through Twitter this morning and it was all a bit much. One video showed a leaking propane tank floating through downtown Ludlow, puffs of white gas fumes blowing out of the tank all the while.
Vermont Public posted a video of the shattered pieces of a house floating down Wardsboro Brook. At first, it was just broken wood. Then you see a refrigerator. A mattress. A couch. Whose house was that? Did they get out in time? If so where are they staying?
Whoever owned that shattered home in Wardsboro Brook surely has a heartrending tale to tell. There are thousands of sad stories in Vermont to come out of this flood. But there will be even more stories of bravery, kindness and generosity. It's how we do things here.
WHAT'S NEXT?
A lot of work. If the rain ever stops. Which it will. Sort of.
That patch of heavy rain over northwestern Vermont which caused some flash flooding in Franklin County was beginning to weaken at around 6:30 a.m. as it moved toward battered central Vermont.
The weakening trend should continue, and by afternoon, there shouldn't be much if any rain in Vermont. Just a very low chance of some isolated showers,
The calvary is getting reinforcements. President Joe Biden is about declare Vermont a disaster area, if he hasn't already by the time you read this. That will free up funds and services to help. Search and rescue teams from as far away as California are flocking to Vermont to help.
The Vermont Agency of Transportation was beyond amazing when it pieced back together Vermont's roads after Irene in 2011. The challenge I think is greater this time, but it'll happen.
After Irene, Vermont enjoyed a spate of beautiful weather to help with the cleanup. Like so much wrong with this current episode, we won't have that luck this time.
It's back to oppressively humid weather again today through the rest of the week and through the weekend. That will slow down recovery efforts. It's hard and dangerous work clearing mud and debris. Everybody will have to be extra careful to stay hydrated and safe.
After tomorrow, there's daily chances of showers and storms.
I worry about some of the more torrential storms undoing some of the cleanup that's going to start today. There is a risk of renewed flooding Thursday, Friday and possibly beyond. The rain won't be nearly as much as we just got - far from it.
But with such damage, it won't take much rain to cause new damage, new issues. It will be hit and miss, and not state wide, but it will be a slap in the face.
I'll have a lot more thoughts on this disaster in the coming days, as you might imagine. Also, what do you want to know about this calamity? More information on how and why it occurred? How you can help? More on what's next? Other ideas? Let me know and I'll try to help.
Some of what I'm learning about this flood has brought tears to my eyes this morning. But, like we always do, well find a way. Stay safe and Vermont Strong.
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