Downtown Montpelier was a real disaster area on Wednesday, the day after a historic flood that hit the capital of Vermont. The Press went to see the extent of the damage at the same time as the majority of its inhabitants.
“It’s not waste, it’s 12 years of dreams that have flown away,” says Richard Sheir, in front of The Quirky Pet shop, located in the heart of downtown Montpelier. The friendly bearded man is busy taking out all the furniture damaged by the spectacular flood which has literally transformed the center of the municipality of 8,000 inhabitants into a disaster area.
His wife, Cindra Conison, the owner of the pet treat shop, waves just how high the water has risen in her business she started 12 years earlier. “There was four feet of water. It was high like that, ”she says.
Despite the state of emergency declared by the federal government, the heart of the capital of Vermont was teeming on Wednesday, and many passers-by came to help a friend or a family member. Some wore long rubber boots and even a mask. A smell of dust and humidity hung in the air. Once inside one of the flooded businesses, we immediately understand why some wear a mask: the smell can become difficult to bear if we stay there for several minutes.
On Main Street and State Street, the same scene in front of practically every address: all the material damaged by the flood is deposited on the sidewalk.
A thin layer of dust covers the street, remnant of the mud transported by the rising waters which invaded the city center on Monday and Tuesday. The Winooski River, however, has regained its bed and is flowing peacefully.
It fell in two days the equivalent of two months of rain on Vermont. In some areas, between 18 and 23 cm of rain caused several floods. Sign of climate change? It usually takes an attribution study to confirm a link between a particular weather event and climate. But several experts have estimated that the torrential rains that had just hit the northeastern United States were most likely attributable to climate change.
A sign of an increasingly changing climate, floods also led to the evacuation of 40,000 people on the other side of the world, in the province of Sichuan in China, on Wednesday. In Japan on Tuesday, floods and landslides killed 6 people, while the country of the Rising Sun has experienced a record rainfall since the beginning of July, reported the Japanese meteorological agency.
Many temperature records were broken on the planet in July and many signs suggest that 2023 will become the hottest year since the beginning of the pre-industrial era, shattering the record set in 2016.
More precipitation to come
In Vermont, we wait until the end of the week before putting away boots, shovels and water pumps. More rain is expected on Thursday and Friday and authorities are still on high alert. But the worst is over, we hope.
PHOTO ROBERT SKINNER, THE PRESS
Nicole Bachand, head of the Montpelier youth center, near all the equipment damaged by the floods
This is at least the wish of Nicole Bachand, responsible for the youth center of Montpelier. Located in the basement of City Hall, the room was flooded and all the equipment is now lying pell-mell in the parking lot. “We lost everything,” she said, feeling sorry for the hundreds of young people who frequented the premises.
Across the street, two women are chatting outside the Capital Cannabis store. If the premises were flooded, the stocks could have been moved elsewhere before the arrival of the deluge, they specify. Nearby, several people are busy at Alpenglow Fitness, a gymnasium, where it is hoped to save the furniture, in some way. Matt McLane came to lend a hand to his niece, owner of the establishment. In particular, it is hoped that stationary bikes can be used again.
The Pho Thai Express restaurant is closed. From July 10 to August 27, indicates a poster in the window. Its owner is in Thailand for part of the summer, says a passerby. “He will have a bad surprise on his return,” he adds.
PHOTO ROBERT SKINNER, THE PRESS
Jane Knight, employee of Bear Pond Books, in Montpelier
“When we arrived this morning, there was mud everywhere,” says Jane Knight, who has worked at Bear Pond Books since 1995. According to her, about 20% of the books are lost. The floor will have to be completely redone, she adds.
The damage is perhaps even greater at the Onion River Outdoor sports store. There are dozens of them cleaning bicycles, ski boots and other equipment that are now in the parking lot. Jeb Wallace-Brodeur came to lend a hand to his friends after three days of photographing the disaster for the local newspaper, The Barre-Montpelier Times Argus. “If you want spectacular photos, go to Barre, you’ll be served,” he advises.
Can’t walk without boots
In Barre, located about ten kilometers from Montpelier, the damage is indeed even greater. In some streets, it is impossible to walk without boots: there is mud everywhere. Workers remove debris from a partially collapsed house on North Main Street. The police control traffic while a Red Cross truck passes us.
PHOTO ROBERT SKINNER, THE PRESS
Using a tractor, this resident of Barre tries to flush water and mud from his land.
A few meters away, several cars were damaged at Ayer Auto Sales, which adjoins the railway line. She couldn’t resist the power of the water either.
In his misfortune, the luckiest of all is perhaps the businessman Frederic Bashara, crossed in front of the building which he officially sold a few days earlier. He was less fortunate however with the Montpelier cinema just opposite, where the water rose to the bottom of the screen where films were still being screened last weekend.
PHOTO ROBERT SKINNER, THE PRESS
Businessman Frederic Bashara (center), in front of the Montpelier cinema
Showing on Wednesday We will be Back After a Brief Intermission (“We’ll be back after a brief intermission”) is on the program. “An idea from one of my grandsons,” says Mr. Bashara, a way of emphasizing that Montpelier will be able to recover after such a disaster.
“We’re all here to help, that’s what we do here,” he says proudly.