Apres le Deluge--Hurricane Irene Hits Vermont
Hurricane Irene slammed into Vermont with a brutal fury. The storm which had worked its way up the East Coast with major wind and rain and was petering out by the time it reached New England. But in an ugly turn of fate, the tempest, which had been downgraded to a Tropical Storm, lingered over Vermont's mountainous terrain bringing major rains which triggered flash floods and landslides.
Having weathered the storm in southern Vermont, the conditions most of the day were typical of a Noreaster, lots of rain and some wind gusts. By evening the situation changed to continued rain and rolling winds. Ironically while the mountains protected the state from the worst winds, the accumulated rains suddenlly turned streams into raging rivers. Roads were washed out and gashed by the rush of water.
The days after the storm was ironically beatiful. The news not. The Weather Channel and social media were running pictures of hard hit Vermont towns--mostly mountain communities which were slammed by the storm and its rush of flash flooding. Roads were swamped with water or were simply gone; bridges in some cases were washed out, and even major roads such as Route 7, Route 30, and Route 100 in the south of the state were cut and closed in many places. Electric power cuts were widespread but the utility CVPS was amazingly able to restore power quickly in most areas within a day or two.
Towns like Londonderry (pictures above) Ludlow, and Wilmington suffered serious damage, as did scores of other communities throughout the state. Even larger towns like Bennington, Brattleboro, and Rutland were affected. Happily there were few fatalities or injuries.
As I write, VT National Guard helicopters are ferrying food and emergency supplies to isolated towns and cut-off communities.
Vermont is strong and its people resiliant. We express our solidarity with the people of the Green Mountain State.
