Super-Sized Culvert Will Protect Brandon From Floods
The Neshobe River running through Brandon during Irene. Photo from Vermont Business Magazine.
During Tropical Storm Irene, the Neshobe River in Brandon captured Main Street/Route 7 as its channel when there was so much water coming down that it couldn’t pass underneath the road. To prevent that from happening again, Brandon has secured a Hazard Mitigation Grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to put a super-sized culvert underneath Rt. 7. The grant will provide over $1.3 million to purchase and install the giant culvert, which will measure 278 feet long, 6 feet high and 12 feet wide. The culvert will accept overflow from the river and help prevent overtopping of the existing bridge which happened in 2011.
Brandon Town Manager David Atherton said “The overflow structure will perform one of the most basic functions of government, the protection of people and property. A safer, more flood-resilient downtown will be attractive to developers and merchants alike. We are very grateful for the expeditious manner in which our application was acted upon, thanks to our congressional delegation.”
Advanced preparation for the next storm can save communities in the long run. For more examples of how towns have acted to prevent flood damage, check out LCC’s Lessons from the Flood.
