BREAKING NEWS

Vermont flooded after Irene's torrential rains

BRATTLEBORO - Vermont residents battled epic flooding on Monday after the remnants of Hurricane Irene set off the state's worst deluge in more than 80 years, washing out roads, knocking out power and forcing hundreds into shelters.
At least one person was killed after being swept into a swollen river in the mountainous, land-locked New England state, which rarely sees tropical storms.
Hurricane Irene had been reduced to tropical storm status by the time it reached Vermont but it still dumped 7 inches of rain that flooded homes and businesses. Floodwaters gushed through downtown Brattleboro, an artsy community of 12,000 along the Connecticut River.
Several of the state's historic covered bridges were washed away as Irene's rains sent rivers spilling over their banks in what officials called catastrophic flooding and the worst natural disaster since 1927.