Tuesday saw rescuers attempting to reach residents stranded in isolated mountain villages after days of torrential rain caused rivers across the region to reach some of their highest levels ever.
Downtown streets in Montpelier, Vermont’s capital city, were flooded. By Tuesday midday, at least 117 people had been rescued from flooded automobiles and residences throughout Vermont, according to officials.
Helicopter And Boat Rescue Operations
The officials claimed that helicopters were attempting to evacuate stranded individuals out of the perilous floodwaters because some people couldn’t be reached by boat.
Governor Phil Scott described the destruction and flooding that are sweeping Vermont as “historic and catastrophic,” adding that the situation is far from resolved.
On Sunday and Monday, slow-moving storms flooded sections of New York and western New England with fast-moving floodwater, displacing hundreds of people from their homes and trapping drivers on a closed Vermont expressway for the night.
On Tuesday, the rain was moving away from the Northeast, bringing flood conditions to Quebec.
Susan Calza, a lifelong Montpelier resident who runs a small art gallery on Main Street and gathered with other locals on Tuesday morning near the borders of the flood zone, said, “I think everyone’s in shock.”
In New York State, flooding claimed the lives of at least one person, and communities all throughout the area were dealing with damage to highways, bridges, train lines, and private property.
Read more: Flash Flood: Vermont Declares State Of Emergency
President Joe Biden Declares State Of Emergency
Early on Tuesday, President Joe Biden proclaimed a state of emergency for Vermont, mobilizing federal resources and disaster relief.
An emergency order was issued by city officials in Montpelier overnight closing the downtown until at least noon on Tuesday, and that order was later extended on Tuesday morning to at least 3 pm.
According to the National Weather Service, the second-highest crest ever recorded for the Winooski River, which flows through Montpelier, was more than a foot higher than it had been in 2011 during Tropical Storm Irene.