Disaster declaration approved for Vermont for July flooding from remnants of Beryl

MONTPELIER, Vt. -- President Biden on Tuesday approved a major disaster declaration for Vermont that makes federal funding available to help people and communities affected by flooding from July 9 through July 11 caused by the remnants of Hurricane Beryl.

Gov. Phil Scott has made a separate disaster declaration request for flood damage caused by storms on July 30.

Beryl’s remnants dumped more than 6 inches (15 centimeters) of rain in just a few hours on parts of Vermont, destroying and damaging homes, knocking out bridges, cutting off towns and retraumatizing a state where some people are still awaiting assistance after catastrophic floods that hit exactly a year earlier.

Two people — a motorist in Lyndonville and a man riding an all-terrain-vehicle in Peacham — were killed by the floodwaters.

The declaration makes federal funding available to people in Addison, Caledonia, Chittenden, Essex, Lamoille, Orleans and Washington counties, federal officials said. It also includes funding to help communities in those counties repair flood-damaged roads and bridges.

“The impact of this storm on communities and individuals has been significant, and while these federal resources won’t alleviate all of those burdens, this financial support is critical to our state’s recovery,” Scott said in a statement.

He has also asked for a separate natural disaster designation from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to help farmers hit by flooding in multiple counties.

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This story has been corrected to show that the flooding occurred on July 9-11.