The Comtu Falls in Springfield Vermont was raging Sunday afternoon after the leading bands of hurricane Irene passed through. The water was moving so fast and furious that it was dizzying to look down.
Springfield was quite fortunate. While many of the other towns in southern Vermont were flooded, Springfield was not. In at least one town in Vermont, rescue workers went door-to-door telling people to evacuate.
Although this video shows the rage and fury of the rushing waters, Springfield residents are relieved the river didn’t rise to street level.
(NOTE: The other Springfield, VT Hurricane Irene video posted, which, at the moment, is 21 seconds long and titled “Hurricane Irene Springfield VT Massive Swollen Raging Rivers” is a direct theft of a portion of the end of this video.)
If you’d like to see what the upper portion of the falls looked like four days prior to hurricane Irene, check out this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WnIB-riZIcQ
August 26, 2011 - After various debacles and delays, with residents returning on multiple days to watch, it finally happened. First thing in the morning the cables were hooked up to the old bridge and in about ten minutes it had been lifted out. Not too long after, the new bridge was set it it’s place and the new footbridge at the old Fellows Gear Shaper in Springfield Vermont is now in place.
….and the old bridge waits to be broken down and hauled away.
August 17, 2011 - The nearly 100 year old footbridge at the old Fellows Gear Shaper building in Springfield Vermont was supposed to be removed today and a shiny new bridge put in it’s place. Unfortunately, things didn’t go exactly as planned. Spectators watched for hours while the new bridge was moved from the parking lot into the street and the cables hooked up to the old bridge to lift it out.
When it finally came time to lift the old bridge out, it just wouldn’t budge. It was discovered there were some additional rods securing the old bridge into place that needed to be cut. However, that wasn’t the end of the problems. The crane still couldn’t lift the old bridge. It turns out that whomever on the project was responsible for estimating the weight of the old bridge was off by 10,000 pounds! Consequently, the crane brought in to lift the old bridge was too small.
