National Guard delivers hope to rebuilding communities

Vermont looked strange from the skies this week. The leaves of the maples, responding to the steady and inexorable pace to autumn, are beginning to unsettle the landscape with muddied tinges of red. Not too far from Burlington, a green lawn had a perfectly-shaped, large peace sign. Moving south there’s occasional evidence of a recently swollen bank, and a tree or two ripped from the ground, roots exposed and lying on its side. By the time one has reached the Waterbury and Moretown area, Vermont’s famous green is usurped by a layer of dirt, swathing the area in a drab tan and clinging to the plant life, holding it down.

A week after Vermont was ravaged by Tropical Storm Irene, National Guardsmen from Vermont and helping states such as Illinois and New Hampshire continued delivering staple supplies such as food, water, tents, cots, blankets and tarps to needy towns. In the early days of what is now called Join Task Force Green Mountain Spirit, Chinooks and Black Hawks from the Illinois Army National Guard in Peoria, and Black Hawks from the New Hampshire Army National Guard were pivotal in immediate deliveries. Sometimes, when civilians spotted these air-vehicles of help, crowds would cheer.

Now, as recovery from damage continues, Vermont Air and Army National Guardsmen are loading up local trucks for drop-offs. Some places remain isolated but most have constructed their own, if shaky, routes out.

Since flood waters from Tropical Storm Irene that hit Vermont, Sunday, Aug. 28, have receded, silt has become a problem for the residents who were hit hard. When a Chinook from the Illinois Army National Guard landed next to a Killington resort to deliver FEMA relief packages, the helicopter stirred up a layer of dirt left from the floods that rose to form an undulating orange wall. A worker there said, as of Wednesday, he was still shoveling out silt that was at least two inches deep. The smell left behind was too strong to take for more than a minute, and he said he would have to rip all the carpets out and maybe some of the walls.

The people of Moretown are very wary about what could be in the soil left behind. Most people choose to walk around town with safety masks over their mouth and nose. “We know there’s sewage and oil that was in the water when it flooded. It makes us nervous that the dust left behind might be toxic,” said Moretown 1st Constable David VanDeusen. He also said they are trying limit traffic in high-dust areas.

Van Deusen said the town was grateful for everything the Vermont Guard has brought to the repairing town. He said he had seen the work the National Guard had done in New Orleans after the wake of Hurricane Katrina, and compared it to the immediate efforts The Vermont Guard did in its home state after Irene. “The items the National Guard has brought us absolutely is helping us rebuild,” he said.

And Moretown is definitely rebuilding. The sounds of deconstruction filled the air as home-owners fought the onslaught of mold-growth that is inevitable after a flooding where some parts of town were under as much as 14 feet of water. The smell was strong in the main part of town, where houses close to each had no choice but to pile mildewing furniture and life-possessions on their front yard. One home was already nearly gutted, only the studs and beams being spared – so far.

Yet observing the community repair itself had a Disney-esque quality. Young children brought water, a prized commodity in stifling heat, to workers who were removing the seemingly never-ending piles of debris. The town hall, clearly now the heartbeat of the town had a steady stream of people going in and out for help or to help. A tent set alongside the building housed volunteers who gave out stock-piled food and water. A sign taped to a case of bottled water asked “Do you need drinking water at your house?”

Groups of teenagers, faces covered by safety masks, helped wherever they were asked. Mitch Grimmer and Sam Worley were two teenagers offering their help Saturday morning to Moretown, even though they themselves were from Waitsfield, which suffered minor damage comparatively. They attend Green Mountain Valley School, where they said they had been encouraged to come out and help the struggling neighboring town.

“We were just cleaning out someone’s chicken coop,” Grimmer said, pointing to his mask. “We had to wear these, there was chicken feces and, unfortunately, some of their chickens had died.”

The two talked about a baseball field that is now gone, a house that had been completely tipped over and laid on its side, one house now on stilts because the basement was washed away, and shops that had been on the side of the river were now pushed towards the road.

“It’s been an eye-opener for us,” Grimmer said. “We’ve been going into houses where we’re taking out people’s ruined things. It’s sad seeing everyone trying to fix what they’ve lost.” But he was quick to say, “We’re all out helping one another. We’re not without hope here.”

Van Deusen said the town needs things like clean water and tents. Other people asked for totes to store stuff that wasn’t ruined. But as a whole, the community is rebounding. “We’re grateful to the National Guard for its help,” he said emphatically. He is also grateful to his community. “I don’t know one person who’s not helping in some way, if they can.”