(Host) Vermont is threatened by more flash floods today, just a day after floodwaters washed over parts of Addison and Windsor counties.
This time, parts of Washington, Caledonia and Essex counties are threatened.
Earlier in the day, heavy rains posed threats in southern Vermont and caused a washout on a town road in Rockingham.
The latest rain came as authorities began to assess the damage from a day earlier in central parts of the state.
Governor Jim Douglas spent the morning on a road tour of some of the worst damage in areas east of Middlebury.
(Douglas) “The most significant problem I think is the village of Ripton, that’s isolated because Route 125 is closed both west and east of that area. It took us 40 minutes to get to Ripton from Middlebury because we had to snake our way through the north branch road, the Lincoln Road, some back roads that make it very difficult to get up to Ripton in an emergency.”
(Host) Douglas and the regional administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency also surveyed the damage from a Vermont National Guard helicopter.
FEMA’s Art Cleaves say the latest storm damage is likely to qualify for federal assistance.
(Cleaves) “We wanted to look today, to be with the governor and director Farr as we look at the damages from the most current storm that just happened yesterday, to see that first hand. And I saw significant damages as the governor just described today.”
(Host) Limited access for emergency vehicles was restored to Ripton by afternoon, but residents still had to take the long detour over rutted back roads.
Douglas says he’s concerned about the prospect of more rain.
(Douglas) “All of our rivers and streams are quite high now, even where there’s been no damage, the rivers are running high and there’s not any capacity for additional rainfall. So, I would urge all Vermonters to maintain vigilance in their personal lives and property and to stay aware of warnings that the emergency management office may be putting out over the coming days to ensure they don’t suffer any other harm.”
(Host) Staff is on hand at Vermont’s emergency operations center in Waterbury in case there’s more flooding. A flash flood warning is in effect for northeast Vermont until nine tonight.