ST. JOHNSBURY, Vt. — Maria Vance was ready to restart her small printing business in St. Johnsbury, Vt., on Tuesday, but then the torrential rains came — again.
“This is insane. I never would have imagined this would happen, especially twice inside of one month,” Vance said. “It’s crazy.”
On Tuesday, Vermonters in Northeast Kingdom communities were digging out of debris and mud after life-threatening flash floods arrived, just three weeks after the remains of Hurricane Beryl blew through the area. During that storm, two people died and more than 100 were rescued, which came exactly a year after nearby parts of Vermont were hit by the worst floods parts of the state had seen in a century.
It was a similar story on Tuesday. Torrential storms dumped 5 to 8 inches of rain over several hours early in the morning, across communities including St. Johnsbury and Lyndonville, according to the National Weather Service and state officials. Flood waters pushed homes off of foundations, destroyed roads, highways, and some bridges. Two dozen rescues were carried out by specially trained crews.
Multiple vehicles were also reportedly under water in East Burke, just north of St. Johnsbury. It was unclear if they were occupied or whether any injuries occurred due to the flooding.
“It’s devastating,” said Donna Goodhue, 70, who has lived in St. Johnsbury for more than 40 years. “There are people who have lost everything.”
Rachel Koenigsbauer was wearing a headlamp and face mask as she worked on her flooded basement. She said when the rainwater came down the street, the storm drains got flooded, and her home of five years got hit. She spent hours on Tuesday pumping out a steady stream of water from her basement.
Her furnace, oil tank, and water tank were destroyed. She’s certain she’ll have mold and water damage. But looking at the bright side, she said, “The community has been amazing. I’m overwhelmed with gratitude. Everybody is helping each other. It’s a wonderful small town.”
Extreme precipitation is one of the hallmarks of climate change in New England. Flash flooding has worsened across the region, scientists have found, as the frequency of those very heavy rain events increase. The number of days with 3 inches or more of precipitation has increased by 60 percent since 1958, according to the National Climate Assessment. Days with 4 or more inches of precipitation have increased by more than 80 percent.
On Tuesday, the Passumpsic River was flooding 2 feet over its banks and crested at 16.4 feet — moderate flood stage. The river floods at 14 feet.
People who’ve lived in Vermont for decades said they’ve never seen such intense flooding; many told the Globe they saw the floods as yet more proof that climate change has come to their backyards.
The damage was street by street and dependent on elevation. Those living higher up were largely spared. Steve Chapple, who’s been in the area for 17 years, said he got just a little damage. “We got nothing really, just half an inch [in the basement].”
He added that God was angry with people for “messing with his climate.”
Jen Kenney, 58, a grade-school teacher who lives in St. Johnsbury, woke up on Tuesday to find the remnants of a mudslide behind her house and an entire side of her yard wiped out. ”It’s kind of scary,” she said. “A lot of people are wondering how this could happen twice in a row, and what are we going to do about it?”
On Tuesday, Vermont’s Emergency Operations Center said 10 swiftwater rescue teams were sent to the hard-hit area and conducted “approximately two dozen rescues from flooded areas.”
In addition to St. Johnsbury, affected areas include the communities of Island Pond, Warners Grant, Morgan, Holland, Charleston, Brighton, Norton, Morgan Center, and Brighton State Park.
Wednesday’s forecast calls for more rain, with a flood watch issued for the northern half of Vermont and New Hampshire through Thursday. “There is the chance for more downpours, but it’s highly unlikely we will see a repeat of Tuesday morning’s event,” said Globe meteorologist Dave Epstein.
On Tuesday, traffic patterns were also disrupted. Interstate 91 was closed between Exit 16 in Bradford and Exit 15 in Fairlee. The state’s transportation department reported Tuesday that “Route 114 in East Burke is CLOSED immediately south of Mt. Hunger Road due to the washout of Bridge 10 over Mountain Brook. Closure is expected to last for an extended period.” In St. Johnsbury, five major roads traveling east and west through the area were closed due to flooding, according to postings on New England 511 transportation map.
While the floods will almost certainly come again, for many, relocating is not an option. Maria Vance said her family-run business just got new machinery after the floods in early July for their printing business under the name of cheaptotes.com. Her store was set to re-open on Tuesday.
“We just bought the business three years ago, so we don’t really have a choice,” Vance said. “We have to get back up and running.”
Richard Boisseau, however, has seen enough. His house in the town center got hit hard, his garage was falling into the brook. “We’re not coming back, the house is unlivable and we don’t have the finances to take care of that,” said Boisseau.
“We’re homeless, but not houseless,” he said, adding that family are stepping up to take care of him and his wife.
Travis Andersen and Shannon Larson of the Globe staff contributed to this report.
John R. Ellement can be reached at john.ellement@globe.com. Follow him @JREbosglobe. Erin Douglas can be reached at erin.douglas@globe.com. Follow her @erinmdouglas23. Madison Hahamy can be reached at madison.hahamy@globe.com. Follow her @MHahamy.