Thousands remained cut off by severe flooding across Vermont, New Jersey and upstate New York yesterday in the lingering aftermath of Hurricane Irene, which has killed nearly 50 people.
US President Barack Obama signed a declaration that a “major disaster” existed in parts of North Carolina and New York, paving the way for federal aid to areas hit by massive flooding and widespread power outages.
Emergency provisions had to be airlifted on Tuesday to dozens of communities stranded by floodwaters as torrential weekend rains dumped by the massive storm system washed away roads and sent rivers cascading over their banks.
Although the much-hyped direct-hit on New York failed to translate into major damage or casualties in America’s most populous city, heavy rain in places like the Catskill Mountains proved a ticking disaster time-bomb.
Three days after the storm’s passage, marooned families were still waiting anxiously for the national guard and firefighters to bring food and water to towns swamped by the floodwaters.
In other places, rescuers have been ferrying thousands of people – including the elderly, children and babies – to safety in rubber motorboats.
The main highway to Wilmington, Vermont was clogged with mud and Irene had turned other roads into deathtrap chasms after dumping two months worth of rain (21 centimetres) in less than a day.
“The problem is inaccessibility,” emergency operations supervisor Dave Miller told AFP as teams struggled to pull trucks out of the sludge and remove fallen trees that had perilously dragged down power lines.
The drastic situation was mirrored in parts of New Jersey and upstate New York, where schools and community centres turned into makeshift Red Cross emergency shelters were nearing full capacity.
In Paterson, New Jersey, teams rescued and evacuated people non-stop on Tuesday under thankfully blue skies after the Passaic River crested four metres above flood stage, its highest level since 1903.
New Jersey state lawmaker Scott Rumana, touring stricken areas with Governor Chris Christie, said it was “unquestionably the biggest flooding event in our lifetimes”.