Updated at 12:06 a.m.
Severe thunderstorms on Thursday caused flash flooding across parts of Vermont, particularly in the Northeast Kingdom and Addison County.
The deluge marks the third year in a row that the state has experienced a major flooding event on July 10. The disasters of the past two years caused tens of millions of dollars in damage across Vermont, which towns are still recovering from.
Just after 6:30 p.m., 5.07 inches of rain had already fallen in West Burke, 4.32 inches had fallen in New Haven and Sutton saw 4.92 inches, according to Matthew Clay, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service’s Burlington office.
In Sutton, one water rescue team was dispatched to “assist the residents of one home cut off by floodwater,” according to a press release from the Vermont Emergency Operations Center.
No injuries or deaths have been reported, as of late Thursday evening.
Other rescue teams were staged in Lyndon, Burke, Woodbury, Stowe, Johnson, Middlebury, Vergennes and Colchester, according to Mark Bosma, a spokesperson for Vermont Emergency Management, and Lyndonville Deputy Fire Chief Greg Hopkins.
“They’ll be there until the threat passes or they move to another area under threat,” Hopkins said.
In the Northeast Kingdom, the east branch of the Passumpsic River at East Haven rose more than 4.5 feet in just over two hours to reach a “minor” flood level and began to recede by 5:30 p.m., according to the National Water Prediction Service.
The flooding washed out part of Route 114, according to a post by NBC5 meteorologist Ben Frechette, threatening the low-lying Northeast Kingdom Mobile Home Park, located on the northern side of Lyndonville.
Burke Town Administrator Jim Sullivan said most of Thursday evening’s flooding took place in West Burke.
“We also had a culvert that overflowed on Old Farm Road that washed out the road,” Sullivan said. “Other than our washout areas, those are the areas that people should pay attention to.”
Sullivan also said a 100-foot section of Newark Street got washed out, and one of the lanes collapsed. “As it is right now, that road is closed,” he said.
Any affected residents should visit the Burke Community Center on 212 School St. or call the clerk’s office, Sullivan said.
In the Addison County town of New Haven, no rescue teams were deployed as of Thursday evening, but town officials said they were keeping their eyes peeled.
“I’m on Field Days Road just past the fairgrounds. We have the road closed. It’s flooded,” said Becky Hutchins, the town’s emergency manager .
Trees and branches had come down in town, Hutchins said, and Green Mountain Power was addressing some downed power lines in the area.
“We had two rain cells that came in: One that came in from the west and one that came in from the south, and they both hit at the same time,” she said.
She also urged New Haven residents to avoid the Otter Creek.
“Otter Creek is very high and rushing right now. I suggest that people stay off from any of the waterways and if you see water, turn around. Do not drive through it cause the roads have gotten some damage to them,” she said.
People should avoid floodwaters and seek shelter in impacted areas, Bosma said.
“All of our fatalities last year were on flooded roads. There’s often an undercurrent and/or washouts you can’t see, and even a car can be swept away,” Bosma wrote in an email. “This is fast-moving, so people should get inside if a storm approaches, monitor rivers and streams, and get to higher ground if there is a rise in the waterway. The last two years storms just stopped and dumped a ton of rain over a long period, so this is different.”
