‘Rain Bomb’ Strikes CT, Dozens Rescued From Floods But No Fatalities Reported

by Donald Eng CTNewsJunkie

HARTFORD, CT — The heavy rains and flash flooding that struck Connecticut Sunday forced emergency workers to rescue dozens of stranded motorists from cars stuck in deep rainwater, but did not cause any injuries or fatalities, state officials said Monday.

But unlike the August, 2024 floods that devastated areas of the Naugatuck Valley and required months of work to reopen washed out roads and bridges, Deputy DOT Commissioner Laoise King reported that the effects from the storm were mostly short-lived

“At the height of the response, we had more than 100 trucks deployed to address flooding, debris and other roadway impacts,” said King. “We had dozens of roads and bridges that were temporarily closed due to the flooding. Some of those include Route 1, I-95 in Greenwich for a short period of time, and the Merritt Parkway between Westport and Fairfield.”

The rain also flooded a DOT garage in Westport, which saw four feet of water inside the facility. King said the department was still assessing the damage to the building and vehicles that were inside, including plow trucks, bucket trucks and assorted pickups. Though personnel had begun moving them to higher ground, the storm’s suddenness meant there were still trucks inside as six feet of water flowed outside.

The good news, she said, is that the stormwaters receded as the rain slowed down and there was no permanent damage to any state infrastructure. In addition, some train tracks flooded, which caused travel delays.

“As of this morning, all state roads have reopened and all rail operations have resumed and are on time,” she said.

King said the amount of rain – up to seven inches in some areas – had come down very quickly, overwhelming the stormwater management system.

“As we all know, much of Connecticut’s stormwater infrastructure was built decades ago, when rainfall patterns were very different,” she said.

Gov. Ned Lamont called the storm a rain bomb – an informal term for a sudden, intense and localized downpour. He said the state would need to dedicate itself to upgrading infrastructure, including the Naugatuck Valley bridges that washed out in 2024 being rebuilt higher and drainage being deeper to allow more water to pass.

“When air gets warmer, it holds more water,” he said. “That’s why these rain bombs are more severe. I read recently twice as severe as they were just a couple generations ago. And that’s when we built our stormwater. That’s when we built a lot of our roads and bridges.”