Updated as of 7/12/2023 at 9:30AM

We appreciate everybody’s patience as we begin to dig out from this historic flood, says a public statement from Barre City. Our crews and staff have been working around the clock to plan our response. We know people are ready to come out and help, but we ask for your patience so we can deploy volunteers effectively, efficiently, and – most importantly – safely.

Here are some key updates and things we are working on right now. Details on all of this will be forthcoming during the day:

*Website updates: We will be setting up a dedicated page on our website today to warehouse flood updates and resources. All updates will be posted there and on this Facebook page.

*Volunteers: We will be posting a form on our website for people wishing to volunteer and asking for volunteer help. Individuals should not be working on the muck, as it can contain hazardous materials. The muck needs to be handled by trained individuals. We have trained teams and equipment on the way.

*Boil Water Notice: The boil water notice remains in effect for now, due to turbidity at the Water Treatment Plant during the flood. We hope to lift it soon, but for now it remains active.

—What should I do?

—Do not drink the water without boiling it first.

Bring all water to a boil, let it boil for one minute, and let it cool before using, or use bottled water. Boiled or bottled water should be used for drinking, making ice, brushing teeth, washing dishes, and food preparation until further notice. Boiling kills bacteria and other organisms in the water. Coliforms are bacteria which are naturally present in the environment and are used as an indicator that other; potentially-harmful, bacteria may be present. When a water system is experiencing fluctuations in water pressure the possibility exists for bacteria and other harmful organisms to enter the water distribution system and contaminate your drinking water supply.

People with severely compromised immune systems, infants, and some elderly may be at increased risk. These people should seek advice about drinking water from their health care providers. General guidelines on ways to lessen the risk of infection by microbes are available from EPA’s Safe Drinking Water Hotline at 1 (800) 426-4791.

*Water: There is a limited supply of water at the Auditorium. Please be judicious — if you are able to boil water, that is the best option at this moment.

*Clean up: We have dumpsters on order. We will post locations once they are in hand. Please do not pile up debris on City streets or in the river. Pile it on your property and City crews will conduct pick ups.

*Streets clean up: Burlington has generously lent us a street sweeper that will arrive tomorrow morning. We will be closing sections of the City to all traffic so the street sweepers can do their job. During these closures, any traffic in those sections will be ticketed. We will post the locations of the closures later today.

*Resources for recovery: We will be arranging meetings with representatives of FEMA and the Small Business Administration — more to come on scheduling.

*Repairs: Anyone making emergency repairs should make them – do not wait for permits. City staff will request that the Council waive permit and recording fees for repairs related to flood damage at the Council’s next meeting.

There is a lot of work ahead of us — but Barre is resilient and we will come back stronger than ever.