Disaster record

Vermont & Northeast Flash Floods (July 2023)

Two years after the disaster 2 deaths $620 million

Summary

Slow-moving storms dropped months of rain in two days across Vermont on July 9 and 10, 2023. Roads washed out. Downtown Montpelier and Barre flooded. The state declared an emergency. The story became national news as those downtowns went underwater.

Two people died in Vermont: Stephen Davoll, 63, and Robert Kerker, 67. Deaths outside Vermont are not in this number. The count was unchanged through the two-year cutoff.

Scientific attribution

The storms stalled over Vermont and dumped extremely heavy rain. Weather agencies said a warmer atmosphere holds more moisture, so storms like this can drop more rain. That does not mean climate change was the only cause. There was no World Weather Attribution study of this flood.

Jul 10, 2023 · Vermont, including Montpelier and Barre, with flooding also in Upstate New York, western Massachusetts, and New Hampshire · flash flooding

← All disasters · Findings · Inclusion rules

Observation window: Jul 10, 2023 → Jul 17, 2023

Messaging tallies

54 / 54 Core Democratic Officials reviewed
2Disaster Mention
2Climate Connection
0 Mentioned Republican Obstruction of Climate Action

About these tallies

“Core Democratic Officials reviewed” shows how many of the 54 Core Democratic Officials have been examined for this disaster. Scoring rules: Methods.

Democratic framing

Summary

Vermont’s two senators named this flood in the seven-day window. Both connected it to climate change. Neither named Republican obstruction of climate action.

Sen. Bernie Sanders issued a July 10 relief statement. On a July 15 tour of Weston, Londonderry, and Ludlow, he called climate change an existential threat and said countries must move off fossil fuels. Sen. Peter Welch issued a July 10 safety statement and spoke on the Senate floor. On the same July 15 tour he said a storm that might have dropped three inches of rain now drops seven or eight.

House member Becca Balint toured with them. She is not a Core Democratic Official. Sens. Schumer and Gillibrand spoke about New York flooding that week. They did not name this Vermont flood.

Statements

Republican framing

Gov. Phil Scott spoke during the seven-day window on July 11. He called the flooding historic and catastrophic. He said floodwaters in Montpelier had risen above Tropical Storm Irene and that Vermont was not out of the woods. He talked about emergency response and recovery. He did not mention climate change.

A Monday-morning briefing on July 10, before noon, is outside the window. No in-window statement from a Republican U.S. senator was found.

Statements

  • Phil Scott (Governor of Vermont) — Jul 11, 2023

Sources

← All disasters