Dozens of homes in the village of Moretown, Vermont, were being evacuated Monday as the nearby Mad River flooded amid Monday's heavy rains.
The call went out for residents to evacuate around 1 p.m., according to WPTZ. The fire chief said between 30 and 50 homes were evacuated.
"Calling for the EVACUATION of the village of Moretown," the Moretown Office of Emergency Management said in a Facebook post, about three hours after posting an initial warning that the Mad River was rising and evacuations might soon be necessary.
The evacuations came after the Mad River at the Waitsfield Village Path flooded on Monday morning, causing impassable conditions.
Gov. Phil Scott said on social media that while damage is expected across Vermont, officials do not believe it will be on the same scale as what flooding caused this summer.
A number of roads were also closed around the state due to flooding, including in Ludlow, the southern Vermont community that was hit hard by flooding in July. Some schools, including Moretown, canceled classes, sent students home early or delayed their openings due to the storm.
The city of Montpelier, which experienced historic flooding over the summer, is also monitoring rivers and flood conditions in the city due to an increased flood risk, according to Vermont Emergency Management. The National Weather Service is predicting a Winooski River peak of 16.8 feet, which is above the 15-foot flood level. The July flood peaked at about 20 feet.
"This afternoon, City department leaders canvased the downtown area alerting residents and businesses in some of the most-flood-prone areas," the city of Montpelier said in a Facebook post. "Some downtown businesses now have water coming into their basements. Lower State Street is closed due to water covering part of the road between Green Mount Cemetery and Bailey Ave."
As of 2:45 p.m., the city said the Winooski River is almost at 14 feet. They said the Wrightsville Dam "has ample capacity to accomodate the increased flood water and is not a concern at this time."
