New York declares state of emergency as Hudson Valley hit by deadly flooding – latest

Large swathes of land in the US northeast are covered with water after heavy rains washed out roads, forcing evacuations and halting travel.

At least one death has been confirmed so far by authorities – a woman in her 40s who was killed in New York‘s Hudson Valley as she tried to escape her flooded home with her dog.

Hudson Valley saw up to 10 inches of rain just on Sunday, an amount that usually falls throughout the three months of summer.

Large parts of New York City were under heavy rains warning overnight while 11 million people in New England remained under alerts.

Dozens of people were trapped in their cars and homes as rescue services carried out operations throughout the day to move people to safer places.

“Dangerous, widespread flash flooding from excessive rainfall is expected across New England through Tuesday morning; Highest risk for Vermont with expected impacts to transit routes,” the National Weather Service warned.

Flooding hit Vermont’s state capital, with Montpelier town manager Bill Fraser estimating on Monday night that knee-high waters had reached much of downtown and were expected to rise a couple of more feet during the night.

Key Points

• Travel disrupted as 13 million people in the US north-east under flood alert

• One killed, 50 rescued so far as US northeast faces extreme downpour and flooding

• Flash flooding expected across New England today

• State of emergency declared in Vermont

Pictured: Town of Ludlow, Vermont left underwater

17:28 , Louise Boyle

Beaches closed for swimming across New England due to high levels of bacteria

17:10 , Louise Boyle

Beaches have been closed for swimming in parts of New England due to high levels of bacteria in the water, according to public health authorities.

Environmental officials reported numerous incidences of “bacterial exceedance”, potentially caused by human fecal matter ending up in the ocean, lakes and reservoirs due to recent storms which have brought heavy downpours and flash floods across the Northeast.

The swimming bans at many popular beaches come at the height of tourist season and also while the Northeast is battling high heat and humidity.

Beaches closed across New England due to high levels of bacteria

Breaking: Vermont warns Montpelier dam could fail amid intense rain and tells stranded residents to get to upper floors

16:44 , Louise Boyle

Vermont warns Montpelier dam could fail amid intense rainfall

Raging torrents wipe out roads in upstate New York

16:25 , Louise Boyle

One storm tracker in the Northeast shared video of Route 218 - connecting the small town of Cornwall in the Hudson Valley to West Point - noting that it was “gone”.

The New York area received intense downpours and extreme flooding from Sunday afternoon which has buckled infrastructure in a number of locations.

Vermont state capital closes downtown

16:10 , Louise Boyle

A storm that saturated the Northeast was moving out on Tuesday, but more flooding was expected after already cutting off access to some communities, including the main approach to the state capital in Vermont.

Montpelier closed its downtown after major storms dropped more than two months of rain on Vermont in 48 hours.

The National Weather Service warns of more potential flash floods.

Watch: Life-threatening flooding sweeps through Vermont

15:49 , Louise Boyle

Vermont sets up shelters in churches and town halls

14:30 , Stuti Mishra

Some people canoed to the Cavendish Baptist Church in Vermont overnight, which had turned into a shelter while volunteers made cookies for firefighters working on rescues. the Associated Press reported.

"People are doing OK. It's just stressful," shelter volunteer Amanda Gross told AP.

Vermont representative Kelly Pajala said she and about a half dozen others evacuated early Monday from a four-unit apartment building on the West River in Londonderry.

"The river was at our doorstep," said Ms Pajala. "We threw some dry clothes and our cats into the car and drove to higher ground."

Rain moving out after flooding hits Vermont hard

13:30 , Stuti Mishra

A storm that left up to two months' worth of rain in Vermont and saturated other parts of the Northeast was moving out on Tuesday morning, but more flooding was expected after already cutting off access to some communities, including the main approach to the state capital.

There have been no reports of injuries or deaths related to the Vermont flooding, according to emergency officials. But dozens of roads were closed, including many along the spine of the Green Mountains. And the National Weather Service issued flash flood warnings and advisories for much of the state from the Massachusetts line north to the Canadian border.

The slow-moving storm reached New England after hitting parts of New York, where one person died as she was trying to leave her home during flash flooding, and Connecticut on Sunday.

Governor says Vermont downpour 'worse than Irene'

12:45 , Stuti Mishra

Vermont’s governor Phil Scott said on Monday night that some parts of the state had seen flooding worse than in 2011 during tropical storm Irene, a historic storm that destroyed bridges, homes and roads.

"We have not seen rainfall like this since Irene," Vermont Mr Scott said, adding that the difference is that Irene lasted just about 24 hours.

"This is going on. We're getting just as much rain, if not more. It's going on for days. That's my concern. It's not just the initial damage. It's the wave, the second wave, and the third wave," he said.

Biden declares emergency in Vermont

12:03 , Stuti Mishra

US president Joe Biden has declared a state of emergency in Vermont, where torrential rainfall has triggered life-threatening flash floods.

The emergency action frees up federal resources to supplement the state and local response efforts as well as authorising the Federal Emergency Management Agency to coordinate all disaster relief efforts across Vermont.

Many rivers in the state were “expected to crest overnight at flood levels,” according to a joint press release from the Vermont Department of Public Safety and the Vermont Emergency Management.

“Vermonters should be vigilant and aware of conditions as floodwaters rise,” the agencies warned in the press release on Monday night.

“If flooding approaches your home evacuate to higher ground sooner rather than later, your route could be compromised by floodwaters and leave you stranded.”

Video: Police rescue stranded motorists as flash floods hit New York state

11:15 , Stuti Mishra

Flood damage so far stands at $3-5bn

09:45 , Stuti Mishra

The devastating floods that hit New York and the entire northeast coast of the US have already wrought billions of dollars of flood damage, reports from private organisation shows.

While the authorities haven't yet released a combined figure of all the damages across states, private forecaster AccuWeather estimated damages and economic losses stood at $3bn to $5bn, preliminarily, based on its own method of evaluation.

'This is an all-hands-on-deck event' says governor as New York and Vermont hardest hit by floods

09:00 , Stuti Mishra

New York and Vermont were the hardest-hit states as torrential downpours lash large parts of the US northeast, leading to floods and widespread damage.

More precipitation was expected overnight until morning, creating further flood hazards, the National Weather Service said.

Vermont officials were calling the flooding the worst since Hurricane Irene reached the state as a tropical storm in 2011.

"This is an all-hands-on-deck" event, Vermont governor Phil Scott told a news conference.

Parts of Vermont had already received between 7 and 8 inches (17 and 20 cm) of rain, turning streets into raging rivers.

In New York, more than 8 inches of rain fell from Sunday to yesterday in Stormville, a small town just over 50 miles (80 km) northeast of New York City.

Much of the New York flooding was along the Hudson River north of New York City including the Orange County town of West Point, home to the Army's US Military Academy.

Flash flooding expected across New England today

08:15 , Stuti Mishra

Flash flooding from excessive rainfall was expected across New England until Tuesday morning with Vermont facing the highest risk, forecasters said.

“Dangerous, widespread flash flooding from excessive rainfall is expected across New England through Tuesday morning; Highest risk for Vermont with expected impacts to transit routes," the National Weather Service warned.

Rainfall rates may exceed 2 inches per hour, according to authorities.

The rain is expected to continue at least till the middle of this week with federal forecasters then determining whether another front is headed for New England.

Roads and homes submerged in knee-deep water in US east coast

07:33 , Stuti Mishra

Travel disrupted as 13 million people in the US north-east under flood alert

06:45 , Stuti Mishra

More than 13 million Americans are under flood watches and warnings from eastern New York state to Boston and Western Maine to the northeast, the National Weather Service said in its forecast yesterday, after storms that began over the weekend inundated rivers and streams.

More than 1,000 flights to and from airports across the region, including New York's LaGuardia and Boston's Logan, were delayed or cancelled yesterday due to the rains.

Amtrak suspended passenger train service between the state capital Albany and New York City after flooding damaged tracks, as did the Metro-North commuter railroad which shares some of the same track.

One killed, 50 rescued so far

06:15 , Stuti Mishra

Torrential downpours unleashed flash floods on the US northeast yesterday that washed out roadways, overwhelmed rivers, prompted 50 swift boat rescues and killed a woman who was swept away in front of her fiancé, officials said.

Mark Bosma, spokesperson for Vermont Emergency Management, told WCAX television

some 50 isolated people were rescued by swift boat.

On Sunday a woman in her 30s was swept away by floodwaters as she tried to leave her home with her dog on Sunday, officials said.

"Her fiancé literally saw her swept away," New York governor Kathy Hochul told a press conference in the town of Highland Falls.

State of emergency declared in Vermont

05:55 , Stuti Mishra

Rescue teams raced to Vermont yesterday after heavy downpours across the Northeast washed out roads and forced evacuations.

Torrents poured through the verdant landscape and small towns of the state after Vermont governor Philip Scott declared a state of emergency on Sunday.

He told a press conference that “this may be just the start of what we’ll see as rainfall continues and will worsen over the next several hours”.

Read more:

State of emergency declared in Vermont as downpours and flash floods cut off towns

05:51 , Stuti Mishra

Welcome to The Independent’s liveblog with the latest on flood alerts in the northeastern US coast. Stay tuned.