No municipal or individual assistance has been declared by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) as of yet for Vermont’s mid-July floods.
In the meantime, Gov. Phil Scott’s office announced Friday that the state has requested another federal disaster declaration for this past week’s additional flooding in the Northeast Kingdom.
But towns aren’t waiting to act.
On Tuesday, Aug. 6, Middlesex plans to hold a special forum to answer resident questions about how to make roads and rivers more flood resilient now and in the future.
Vermont is expected to see more frequent and more intense extreme rain in the future, as humans continue to burn fossil fuels.
And in Richmond this past week, the select board held a special meeting about the July 10-11 floods.
Officials went over what’s been fixed or needs fixing, including the town’s wastewater pump station, the Volunteers Green park, a new utility truck, roads and culverts — not to mention entire neighborhoods of homes.
Red Barn Lane and Lily Pond Circle residents described a “tidal wave” of water rushing over their properties after a beaver dam broke at a nearby pond.
Julie Welkowitz said she still had propane tanks floating in her yard.
“I can't even live in the house — it's like, totally unlivable,” she said. “I've been, you know, trying to find housing assistance, money.”
Richmond officials shared resources including Vermont 211, the Howard Center community outreach line, and several local disaster relief funds the Vermont League of Cities and Towns suggested.
Town manager Josh Arneson also said Richmond should set up a long-term recovery group.
“There's a good amount of local residents which are impacted by the flood,” he said. “And a long-term recovery group really acts to help figure out what the needs are of people.”
He added that such a group could help connect residents with resources at the local, state and national levels.
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