A New York woman was killed when a giant flash flood ripped her home from the ground — as Vermont is expected to be ravaged by up to six inches of rain overnight.
Pamela Nugent, 35, drowned while trying to flee her home in Highland Falls, New York, with her dog during the catastrophic flood on Monday. Rescue teams retrieved her body from the bottom of a ravine.
Devastating rains have blocked roads and battered homes along the east coast, with more damage expected in the early hours of Tuesday morning.
Nugent – who was recently engaged to her partner before drowning in the horrific flood – was remembered by her neighbor Jessica Eshleman.
Eshleman told ABC7, “I’m still in a little bit of shock. I’ve lost everything.’ She said that Nugent, her fiancé and her father were trying to move up the ranks.
She said, “And then they came over, and I think she freaked out and panicked, she tried to cross with the dog, it just happened too suddenly.”
Pamela Nugent, 35, drowned while trying to flee her home in Highland Falls with her dog during the catastrophic flood on Monday
An aerial view of Pamela Nugent’s neighborhood, where she died in a flood yesterday
The Vermont State Police have warned that flooding and heavy rains will cause flooding in the state Monday night
Another neighbor who knew Nugent said, “If someone dies, it’s a pity. The circumstances of how it happened makes it even worse.”
The storm’s torrential downpours drenched New York on Sunday, causing flash flooding near West Point, where the military academy is located, and surrounding towns.
New York Governor Kathy Hochul warned yesterday that although the storm had passed, the damage was catastrophic.
“This was a frightening, life-threatening experience,” she said, adding that she had spoken to the White House to request federal assistance.
She said of Nugent, “Her house was taking too much water, she was with her dog, and her fiancé literally saw her get swept away.”
Orange County Executive Steven Neuhaus said, “She was trying to get through (the flood) with her dog and she was overwhelmed by tidal-type waves.”
New York Governor Kathy Hochul said of Nugent, “Her house was taking in too much water, she was with her dog, and her fiancé literally watched her get swept away”
Pamela Nugent with her fiancé. He saw her dragged into the ordeal
A damaged car lies on a portion of a collapsed roadway along Route 32 in the Hudson Valley near Cornwall, NY Monday, July 10, 2023
Jessica Eshleman, neighbor and friend of Pam Nugent
A general view of a flooded area, in Ludlow, Vermont
Footage from this evening showed Ludlow, Vermont, completely submerged as roads turned into rivers amid the devastating deluge
Millions of people in New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, Connecticut, Maine and Pennsylvania remain subject to flash flood warnings.
The flood’s epicenter was in Hudson Valley, NY, on Monday, but Vermont is expected to be worst hit on Tuesday.
The Vermont State Police said in a warning: “Dangerous flooding continues this afternoon across most of Vermont.
Nearly three dozen state highways are closed due to high water, and additional closures are possible as rivers and streams continue to rise. This figure excludes city roads.”
Footage from this evening showed Ludlow, Vermont, completely submerged as roads turned into rivers amid the devastating deluge.
In a press release Monday night, the Vermont Department of Public Safety and Emergency Management said rapid water rescue teams were working “primarily in the cities of Londonderry, Weston, Bridgewater, Andover, Ludlow and Middlesex.”
Rivers are expected to reach flood levels overnight, they warned.
The dams in Jamaica and Townshend are expected to “release large amounts of water over their spillways overnight.”
Cars drive on the main road to West Point after a ‘1,000 years’ of rainfall drowned the riverside town, killing at least one and destroying homes and roads
Emergency teams went from house to house in Stony Point, New York yesterday, looking for anyone in need of rescue. A woman drowned while trying to leave her home with her dog in Highland Falls, near West Point
In a dire forecast, Vermont’s National Weather Service said the storms could be “potentially catastrophic” and as bad as that of Hurricane Irene in 2011.
“Expect significant to potentially catastrophic widespread flash flooding through Monday night, with possible impacts not seen since Irene,” the weather service said in a forecast.
The Vermont State Police say roads are already closed as a result of the flooding, with more closures expected.
“Severe, life-threatening flooding is occurring across much of Vermont today.
Emergency services have conducted rescues in multiple communities.
“Flash flood warnings are in effect from the Massachusetts line to the Canadian border,” said an announcement on the force’s Twitter account.
At a press conference, Vermont Governor Phil Scott warned, “We haven’t seen rainfall like this since Irene and in some cases it will exceed that.”
Nineteen people have already been rescued by boat in Vermont.
In Burlington, Vermont, the ground has already received 300 percent of normal rainfall in the past two weeks, making it “high risk.”
Some towns in southern Londonderry and Ludlow are inaccessible, as is the city of Vermont.
Flooding this morning over the dam on the Ottauquechee River near Simon Pearce in Quechee. Vermont State Police are bracing for widespread damage with historic rain on the way
Flooding surrounds a parking lot, in Highland Falls, Orange County, New York, U.S. The rain has passed the Empire State, but damage is extensive
Camp workers in Plymouth are being evacuated and emergency experts are carefully monitoring dams across the state to prevent further flooding.
Hurricane Irene has killed 49 people in the Caribbean and east coast.
Sunday in New York, Cornwall, on the west bank of the Hudson River, has also declared a state of emergency.
Neuhaus said the village of Highland Falls, near West Point, was the scene of “an absolute war zone.”
Predicting that repairs to repair the ‘massive’ water damage would take months, he added; “It’s a difficult situation, a lot of people are trying to fight their way in to help us.”
State Senator James Skoufis confirmed that “vital infrastructure and homes had been washed away” during the catastrophic weather.
Rockland County Executive Ed Day said six hikers had to be rescued from the surrounding, flooded site – as well as dozens of drivers – who became trapped in the intense downpours.
Day said, “The Orange County and Rockland fire departments rescued 40 people from their cars at the long mountain circle at the top of the Palisades Parkway.”