Current News

Irene has had a devistating effect on Vermont. The following is a brief report on how the Vermont Campgrounds have fared.
Peter Daniels, Executive Director of the Vermont Campground Association, reports that they have two campgrounds that have suffered total flooding. Camping on the Battenkill in Arlington will not be able to access the damage until the river recedes. They may not be able to open this fall. Abel Mountain in Braintree has also suffered severe damage when the river flooded the campground and destroyed their office and bathhouses. All the utilities will need rebuilding. They may not be even able to open next year. Horseshoe Acres in Andover has already brought in heavy equipment and outside contractors to open up for the weekend. Rivers Bend in Middlebury saw half of their campground flooded,including the bathhouse and laundry, but are now open and ready for the weekend.

Online advertised vacancies were down 163,900 in August to 3,990,600, according to The Conference Board Help Wanted OnLine (HWOL) Data Series released today. Vermont was down 400. The August drop follows a decline of 217,000 in July and a decrease of 100,000 in June. The Supply/Demand rate stands at 3.35, indicating there were just over 3 unemployed for every online advertised vacancy in July, the latest monthly data available for unemployment.

State Auditor Tom Salmon, CPA, today urged state and local officials and flood victims to be mindful of the need for proper documentation for FEMA assistance and other reimbursements.
Salmon said, ‘We already know that insurance and FEMA will not cover 100 percent of the losses. Thorough documentation and photographs will help you optimize your financial recovery.’

Representative Peter Welch (D-VT) notified House leaders today that he will be seeking significant disaster relief for Vermont due to the catastrophic damage caused by Tropical Storm Irene. It is expected that Congress will need to appropriate additional disaster assistance funds to pay for federal recovery efforts in Vermont and elsewhere.

‘Vermont is responding promptly and energetically to repair and rebuild,’ Welch said in the letter to House Speaker John Boehner and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi. ‘But we cannot do it alone. Upon our return to Washington, I will be asking to work closely with you and our House colleagues to provide Vermont with the federal assistance it needs to help itself recover. Vermonters have always supported disaster relief for communities around the country hit hard by natural disasters, and we always will. Now we ask for the support of our colleagues to assist Vermont.’

The US Department of Transportation released $5 million in emergency funds to rebuild and repair roads and bridges destroyed or damaged in Vermont by Tropical Storm Irene, Vermont’s congressional delegation announced today.
U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood on Tuesday evening notified U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), a member of the Senate Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee. Sanders had been in discussion with LaHood to explain the magnitude of the destruction in Vermont and to convey the state's need for emergency help.

August 31, 2011 ‘ 7 am update. CVPS crews assisted by nearly 600 outside contractors continue to move into the devastated areas of central and southern Vermont this morning. Addison and Bennington County outages will be restored today, while work continues in Windsor, Rutland, Windham and Orange counties.
As of 7 am, more than 59,500 of the 73,000-plus customer outages have been restored, with 14,300 remaining.
Crews will be moving into or continuing work in Killington, Rochester, Stockbridge, Hancock, Granville, Pittsfield, Randolph, Braintree, Brookfield, Bethel, Northfield, Roxbury and Plymouth in central Vermont; and Marlboro, Dover, Halifax, Stratton and Wardsboro in southern Vermont today (among other areas). While crews will be doing extensive repair work, in many cases, they will be rebuilding entire sections of the CVPS electrical system, including substantial work to several substations.

Green Mountain Power has restored power to all of its customers affected by Hurricane Irene, with the exception of customers whose homes or businesses were flooded and required inspection by state officials before power could be restored safely. Of the 338 customers currently without power, we have received inspection certificates for 20 of them and are working now to restore power to those customers tonight. We will continue to restore power to customers as their inspections are completed in the coming days. More than 40,000 outages were reported during the storm.
If any customer does not have power and does not need electrical inspection due to flooding, they should call Green Mountain Power at 1-888-835-4672. (1-888-TEL-GMPC).

The Vermont Agency of Transportation announces that today they have opened five (5) bridges in Bennington and Rutland Counties, and twenty (20) segments of downed roadways throughout the state in response to Hurricane Irene.
These road improvements are spread across the state system, extending from the North on Route 242 in Westfield to as far south as Vermont Route 103 in Ludlow and Chester. The five bridges are in Bennington and Rutland Counties, including two bridges in Manchester on US Route 7, one in Mount Tabor on US Route 7, one in Pawlet on Vermont 149, and one in Sunderland on US Route 7.

The largest fleet of utility trucks, workers and resources in Central Vermont Public Service history is making steady, solid progress on storm restoration today, thanks to improving access and the sheer numbers of workers. But CVPS cautioned that complete restoration remains dependent on road access, and could take weeks.

The US Small Business Administration announces today that federal economic injury disaster loans are available to small businesses, small agricultural cooperatives, small businesses engaged in aquaculture and most private non-profit organizations of all sizes located in Chittenden, and Grand Isle counties in Vermont as a result of excessive rain, flash flooding, high winds, lightning and cooler than normal temperatures that occurred from March 1 through June 1, 2011.
‘These counties are eligible because they are contiguous to one or more primary counties in New York. The Small Business Administration recognizes that disasters do not usually stop at county or state lines. For that reason, counties adjacent to primary counties named in the declaration are included’

As many resorts, inns and hotels throughout Vermont have either closed or become inaccessible in the aftermath of Hurricane Irene, Basin Harbor Club in Vergennes, Vermont is offering guests of those properties complimentary stays at their resort.

Up to $10 Million is available through VEDA’s Hurricane Irene Assistance Loan Program to assist Vermont businesses and farms in their efforts to recover from direct physical damage caused by flooding related to Hurricane Irene.
Eligibility & Loan Purposes
Borrowers eligible to participate include all types of businesses and farms that sustained DIRECT physical flood related damage, including but not limited to damage to or loss of inventory, equipment, business premises, crops, animals, feed or other supplies. Not-for-profit organizations are also eligible.
Residences, apartment houses and mobile home parks are not eligible.
Interest Rates/Terms