Gov. Peter Shumlin with Keith Flynn, commissioner of the Department of Public Safety. VTD/Taylor Dobbs, file photo
Gov. Peter Shumlin declared a state of emergency for Vermont on Saturday afternoon and urged the state’s residents to stay at home on Sunday when Hurricane Irene is expected to hit Vermont with high winds and heavy rainfall. The declaration allows the Vermont National Guard to mobilize in advance of the storm.
Shumlin described the anticipated impact of Irene on Vermont as an “unprecedented challenge.” The biggest storm-associated risks are flooding and downed trees that could cause extensive power outages.
“We are preparing for the worst and hoping for the best,” Shumlin said. “We have every reason to prepare for the worst.”
The epicenter of Hurricane Irene is predicted to pass through New Hampshire on Sunday. Vermont is expected to be buffeted by tropical storm level winds of sustained 40 mile-per-hour winds with gusts of 60 to 70 miles per hour. In addition, the state could see as much as 8 inches of rain in a 24-hour period.
The storm will not be regionalized – meteorologists say the weather pattern will affect the whole state.
Shumlin made the emergency declaration in front of a bank of weather tracking screens in the new command center at the newly renovated Public Safety building in Waterbury. Shumlin said state emergency officials are anticipating flooding and mass power outages. Low-lying areas that are prone to flooding are of particular concern, he said. Vermonters who live near rivers and streams should consider moving to higher ground on Sunday.
The governor asked residents to use common sense and prepare to be self-reliant during the worst of the storm. He told reporters that Vermonters should get food, bring in water, prepare for long periods of power outages and move debris from their yards today and plan to stay at home tomorrow.
“We need to take this one seriously,” Shumlin said. “This is the time to avoid a situation we would regret. In situations like these, loss of life comes from a lack of prudence.”
Shumlin said the state is well prepared. In addition to the call up of the Vermont National Guard, search and rescue teams have been dispatched to Johnson and Dummerston — two areas that could be most prone to flooding.
Keith Flynn, the commissioner of the Department of Public Safety, said two Federal Emergency Management Agency officials are in Vermont to provide assistance during the storm, the sheriffs’ association and municipal officials are coordinating with the state.
“It’s not unreasonable to expect that all Vermont rivers will possibly flood,” Flynn said.
Flynn urged residents to “just be Vermonters” and look out for neighbors who need special attention.
It’s possible that some residents will need to be “self-reliant” for a few days. That’s because power outages could last at least several days. Emergency utility crews, including local linemen and additional workers from Canada and Texas, Illinois and Missouri, will not be venturing out into the storm on Sunday night.
Central Vermont Public Service has added 303 workers to its staff of 500 to boost the work crews that are set to begin restoring power early Monday morning. President of CVPS Larry Reilly asked customers to call the utility with outage information so that CVPS can respond quickly. “Identifying where the power outage is helps us dispatch crews in the most efficient manner,” Reilly said.
Green Mountain Power has also doubled its work crews in anticipation of downed lines.
Winds above 40 miles per hour will “cause significant damage,” according to Mary Powell, CEO of Green Mountain Power.
In addition to the high winds, when the ground is saturated, trees are more likely to blow over.
Dotty Schnure, communications director for GMP said in an interview that storm-related deaths are often associated with people encountering live wires and driving into flooded roadways.
People on life support are a priority in power restoration efforts, but it’s possible the damage could be so great that it may be impossible to restore power for several days, Schnure said.
“We see the storm as a multi-day event,” Schnure said. “All indications are it’s going to be bad — it’s just a question of how bad it’s going to be. Our sense is we’re going to have a lot of damage. We’ve been putting together a plan for all of our logistics so everything can run as smoothly as possible.”
Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power plant officials are taking extra precautions during the storm. Larry Smith, communications director for the plant, said Vermont Yankee is designed to withstand 300 mile an hour winds and the nuclear reactor is located above the 500-year flood-stage level. The plant has 14 days of fuel supply on hand and 3 million gallons of water on site. Additional personnel have also been brought in to help with any problems associated with the storm. A controlled shut down is an option if there are problems with the power grid, Smith said.
FairPoint Communications reported that it is also bringing in more emergency crews. Officials say “voice” customers will be able to retrieve and store calls during power outages.
There have been numerous event cancellations for Sunday and Monday. What follows is a partial list with links to press releases with more details.
Shelburne Museum will be closed on Sunday.
The University of Vermont has cancelled convocation events on Sunday.
Norwich University has cancelled all Sunday afternoon events.
Lyndon State College has postponed classes.
The Agency of Agriculture urges pet and livestock owners to make plans for care during the storm.
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As we get into Irene, it seems like this storm’s impact will be similar to the way that Floyd impacted my area in 1999 and a summary of what happened may be instructive.
I word it that way because most of Vermont did not have the same impact from Floyd as my town of Woodbury and the area mostly just to the north and a portion of Calais.
At the time I was emergency management director and fire captain in Woodbury. We received five inches of rain and then came winds that probably hit the 60 mph range. All the roads in Woodbury became blocked by fallen trees and all power and phones were out of commission that morning.
Almost all the trees that had fallen were poplar. For some reason (shallow root structure?) those were the trees most affected.
Once we were assured by the power company that all power was off and it was safe, the WVFD put together a crew to help open the roads and remove trees from the fallen power lines.
I should note that many phone lines were, in fact, intact. However, the trend in recent years has been to put more and more switching stations in rural areas. These require power. Their backup batteries during daytime only last a few hours. Phone company trucks have generators. In order to charge the batteries, they have to leave a truck at each of the stations. Within about five miles of my house there are at least four of these stations. There aren’t nearly enough trucks and they are needed to repair lines.
The upshot is you can expect to lose phone service. Phones may come back briefly from time to time as they re-charge batteries. Cell towers in Vermont are not required to have backup generators. Some do, some don’t. They also interface with the wired system. So, you may lose cell service too.
After Floyd, as I remember it, it took about four to five days to get power back. I should note that most of the state didn’t lose power. With Irene, there would most likely be more widespread outages.
In Woodbury, in accordance with the recently adopted emergency plan, we re-convened the emergency planning committee to determine who might need help with temperatures dropping below freezing at night and uncertainty as to when the power would be back. We then divided up the names of the people that may be in need and checked up on them.
While we can hope the damage later today won’t be that severe, I wouldn’t bet on it.
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It is prudent to prepare for the worst and hope for the best.
To me that is common sense. But common sense is all too uncommon today. That said I believe that our new Gov. has both common sense and real intelligence as well.
Hopefully this storm will not destroy too much property and will not take any lives here in Vermont. It has already taken lives elsewhere.
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Good to hear that Vermont Yankee is proactive and is shutting down during the hurricane…nothing like a runaway reactor during a severe storm that we know about. Comforting even.
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The rain must be messing up the Sheffield Mountain where blasting and road building is taking place on 2,500 ft high ridge lines for the new Iberdrola (Spanish) wind turbines.
The water run-off must tremendous.
I wonder if the design of ditches, culverts, etc., were up to the task.
If not there will be some major washouts that will fill up existing streams with silt, etc.
After the bad weather is over, or even during, photos should be taken to record what happens on disturbed mountain tops.