STOWE, Vt. (WCAX) – Local road crews are rebuilding after powerful storms swept through our region on Sunday. Thunderstorms and even the threat of tornados swept across our region, but it was the torrential rains that left their mark.
In Stowe, rushing water overwhelmed culverts and washed away huge sections of gravel roadway.
“A lot of wind, a lot of rain, it was pretty wild,” said Gigi Klein of Stowe.
Small creeks and river streams transformed into torrents, washing out culverts and crumbling an entire lane on the Bolton Access Road.
On Honey Hollow Road in Richmond, multiple washouts stretched about a mile.
Alex Noyes got home from work around 9 p.m. on Sunday. She woke up and sent us video of her driveway on Stowe Hollow Road.
“There was a 15-foot gap and I think nine feet deep in front of my driveway. It was the size of your car,” Noyes said. “I’m looking for my hot pink mailbox that washed away yesterday in the storm. I’m also looking for my drone that crashed.”
In Stowe, road crews worked feverishly through the night to rebuild Dewey Hill Road.
“We had major flood damage here on Dewey Hill,” said Travis Hill of Stowe. “Took out both sides of the road. We’re working to get the road passable.”
Crews rebuilt old rusted culverts while frustrated drivers tried to find alternative routes.
“Coming up to here, it was completely normal. I saw nothing out of the ordinary. And then I come up on this and it’s a war zone,” Daniel Donovan said.
“I’m trying to get home and the road is kind of gone,” Klein said. “They are fixing it, they’re doing a great job, but its definitely a little inconvenient.”
VTrans says state roads were largely spared, though Route 12 on the Elmore-Worcester line sustained damage.
The storm also sparked multiple tornado warnings. The National Weather Service has now confirmed that a twister touched down in the southern New Hampshire town of Dublin on Sunday, damaging trees and lifting and moving a truck. However, there was no significant wind damage in our immediate region.