Flood damage outpaces some repairs in hard-hit Vermont town

The Vermont town of Lyndon was hit by severe flash floods twice last month. As residents brace for the remnants of Tropical Storm Debby to arrive Friday, some worry that the pace of small-town recovery can’t keep up with the increasingly severe weather fueled by climate change.

“I need a three-week drought,” Municipal Administrator Justin Smith said on Wednesday. And even that wouldn't be enough.

“We need the water to shut off so we’re not losing ground on things that we’ve already worked on, and we’re not having to leave what we’re working on to prep something for the next rain event,” he said.

The flooding that hit the northeastern part of the state on July 30 knocked out five bridges, destroyed five homes, damaged 20 to 30 more and caved in and washed away roads in Lyndon, a rural town of about 5,600 people. It came three weeks after after flooding in the north and center of the state from the remnants of Hurricane Beryl. That storm killed two people, including a driver in the village who was swept away by floodwaters.

A flood watch has been issued for the area from Friday afternoon through Saturday morning.

“We're very concerned about what this water might bring, as far as more home loss,” Smith said.

The town is preparing by removing as much debris as possible on the most heavily damaged roads, emptying out culverts, and armoring the areas in the brook and its new path by placing large rocks where the water is likely to have the most force, he said.

A number of roads are still closed while the work progresses. A temporary bridge was installed Tuesday, opening up access for about 30 people, including a farmer who couldn't get a truck in to pick up milk, Smith said. Most people now have some access in or out, he said.

Jaqi Kincaid lives on the road with her husband and elderly mother. The brook below turned into a torrent during last week's flooding and took out part of their back yard, including the well, and heavily damaged the garage leaving it hanging off a cliff. People have been incredibly helpful including giving them water because they don’t have any, she said. The power is back on.

“Our fear is if Debby comes through with all that rain we’re going to lose the house, too,” she said. “Our fear is just losing everything like some other friends have down the road.”

Nearby, an elderly woman told the fire chief Wednesday that she was concerned about still not having phone or internet service.

The temporary bridge allowed a truck to get up to Speedwell Farms to pick up milk this week. The dairy farm, which milks about 97 cows, had to dump milk for nearly a week, at a loss of about $1,500 a day. On Wednesday, the farm — which had been nearly out of grain — received a truck delivery, Nichols said.

Each new storm causes more stress, said Smith, the town’s municipal administrator. Will it be a sprinkle or prolonged downpour, how much rain will come and when will it end? The reaction is more significant considering the state the town is in, he said.

“It’s one thing when you have all your structures and all your culverts and your drainage systems operational, and it’s another when you know that you don’t because they’re either destroyed or they’re plugged and there’s only so much you can get to all at once, and you’re wondering what those affects are going to be,” he said. “So it’s obviously something that we spend a lot of time worrying about.”