Days after flooding devastated parts of southern Vermont, the state’s three-member congressional delegation on Saturday toured damage to Weston, Londonderry and Ludlow.
Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., Sen. Peter Welch, D-Vt., and Rep. Becca Balint, D-Vt., got an in-depth look at how local homes, businesses and roads fared in the flooding. And residents, business owners and town officials got a chance to quiz the three about the likelihood and timing of federal disaster aid.
Balint noted that Vermont is still waiting for federal aid to help growers deal with a freeze this spring that hammered fruit crops particularly hard — and a Londonderry official said the town had just finished up a project related to Tropical Storm Irene, which hit Vermont in 2011. Sanders, meanwhile, expressed concern about the limitations of homeowners insurance.
Municipal officials described local responses to the flooding emergency. Town road crews worked overtime to deal with the worst problems, they said. Londonderry’s highway crew was able to haul 60 truckloads of fill out of the town-owned quarry in a single day.
See photos from the visit below.
