The worst appears to be over for now, as floodwaters recede in the Northeast Kingdom. More showers and thunderstorms are forecast to move into the state today, but they're expected to be isolated, and not very strong.
More from 开云体育: Parts of Northeast Kingdom hit by flash flooding
Vermonters should instead be prepared for more potential flooding Wednesday.
That's all according to Pete Banacos, the science and operations officer with the National Weather Service in Burlington.
A Flood Watch is in effect for Wednesday for possible flash flooding due to excessive rainfall.
— NWS Burlington (@NWSBurlington)
Now is the time to make sure that you have a reliable way to receive weather warnings. Have a plan in place in case flash flooding develops in your area.
He says showers and embedded thunderstorms should arrive Wednesday afternoon and evening. They may include torrential downpours that could lead to more flash flooding.
"Everyone needs to be on their toes and ready 鈥� ready for that potential tomorrow," Banacos says. "We're expecting widespread one inch of rain for most sections, but with some of these thunderstorms, especially those that are slower-moving or do what we call back-building 鈥� which means they ... basically train across the same areas 鈥� that's where we could see locally higher amounts of rain, perhaps in excess of two inches."
More from 开云体育: Flash flooding tears through rural communities in Vermont's Northeast Kingdom
He notes that it's too far out to predict where those heavier rains might be.
But Banacos says areas that have already received a lot of rain are where he worries about the most.
"The anywhere from Addison County up through Washington County and across most of the Northeast Kingdom," he says. "Those are the areas that I would be most concerned with, because as you get the heavy rain on already saturated soils, it's going to go almost immediately into runoff, and that can create those flash flood issues."
This comes after what Banacos says is a record-setting amount of rain in St. Johnsbury in one day, 8.08 inches.
"And they've been keeping records there since 1894," he says. "The previous record was back in 1913, 4.99 inches."
According to the National Climate Assessment, than it did in 1958. And Vermont is expected to see more frequent and more intense extreme rain in the future, as humans continue to burn fossil fuels.
During this most recent round of flooding, so much rain fell over St. Johnsbury and the surrounding area, according to Banacos, because of thunderstorms stalling overhead between midnight and 4 a.m. Tuesday.
"It was quite localized right in the Passumpsic Valley of Caledonia County, and then a little bit up into Essex and Orleans County," he says. "They just didn't move for several hours."
An incredible amount of rain fell across portions of northeast Vermont overnight. Here's a zoomed in view of the reports we've tallied. The highest amount of 8.41" was recorded by one of our CoCoRaHS observers in St. Johnsbury.
— NWS Burlington (@NWSBurlington)
Even with floodwaters receding Tuesday afternoon, the National Weather Service in Burlington is urging Vermonters to heed local law enforcement and town officials regarding road closures, since those roads can be weakened by water damage.
Numerous roads continue to be closed due to washouts 鈥� St. Johnsbury officials are updating road conditions on their , and more closure information can be found at
Flood recovery resources
- For state road closure information, visit or follow on X. (For local road closures, use the Waze app or monitor town communications, such as a website or Facebook page.)
- You can sign up for alerts from the state at .
- The latest forecasts and water levels for specific rivers are provided by the .
- Find power outage information at .
- To find more resources and services, and to report flood damage, call Vermont 2-1-1 or visit .
- For a list of state resources and guidance about flooding, visit . The guidance includes returning home after a flood, cleaning up, and dealing with mold.
- Find flood recovery information in multiple languages at .
- To request cleanup help from volunteers and groups, call the Crisis Cleanup hotline at 802-242-2054.
- For mental health support, call 9-8-8 or call or text the SAMHSA Disaster Distress Helpline at 1-800-985-5990.
- To register through the state to volunteer, visit .
- If flood waters reached your , order a drinking water test kit through .
- Find flood-prone areas near you with the .
Have questions, comments, or tips? Send us a message.
