Lake Champlain Reaches 102.5 Feet

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(Host) Floodwaters receded and some roads reopened today, but anxiety also grew over the prospect of more rain in northern Vermont, where incessant rain and lingering runoff from snowmelt has created widespread flood conditions.

A day after the roiling water of the Lamoille River spilled into parts of Cambridge, Jeffersonville and Johnson, homeowners were drying off possessions, pumping out their basements or just taking stock of the muddy mess left behind.

Meanwhile, water levels on Lake Champlain continued to rise today and, as VPR’s Melody Bodette reports, the lake level has now broken all previous records.

(Bodette) Andy Nash of the National Weather Service says the lake has already passed 102 feet above sea level in Burlington.

(Nash) "That is a record for the Burlington Waterfront, and even the measurements up at Rouses Point are up at about 102 feet. The all time record that we have for 1869 is just 102.1 feet up at Rouses Point."

(Bodette) Continued rainfall and snowmelt will push the lake even higher. Nash expects the waters to rise as runoff makes its way to the lake over the next couple of days.

Lake Champlain Transportation’s Heather Stewarts says the ferry between Essex, New York and Charlotte, Vermont shut down because of high water:

(Stewart) "The Essex dock is awash, so water is on top of the dock, so it is unsafe for vehicles to drive on and off the dock."

(Bodette) Andy Nash of the National Weather Service says high water can cause problems for lake-side roads:

(Nash) "We’re getting into uncharted territory now with the lake being this high, and if we get some strong winds, and we get the wave action on top of that will make things worse, so any property, roads that are close to the lake, they’re at risk."

(Bodette) And it takes a long time for water to move out of Lake Champlain. So Nash expects the lake to will stay above flood stage for several weeks.

For VPR News, I’m Melody Bodette.

(Host) On Friday morning, the level of Lake Champlain in Burlington reached 102.5 feet. The maximum known lake level was 102.1 feet, on May 5, 1869.

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