Images

A sediment sample taken from Connecticut River at Thompsonville, CT (01184000). 

Before Irene reached New England, the USGS New England Water Science Center had to make sure our boats were running properly in anticipation of making discharge measurements in the larger rivers. In some cases, we had to get permission ahead of time to use boat ramps that were closed to the public.

This photo taken on August 30, 2011 shows what used to be the parking lot where we parked our field vehicle during a previous deployment. The rocks in the forefront used to be part of the paved parking lot that was largely destroyed during Irene. 

A High-Water Mark (HWM) at USGS station ID 01150900 Ottauquechee River at West Bridgewater, Vermont was observed at an undesirable location. It was inside the gage house and above the equipment, which was destroyed!

This photograph of the White River near West Hartford, Vermont (USGS station ID 01144000, gage on the left) was taken on August 29, 2011 and is looking upstream towards the USGS gage.

Covered bridge over Otter Creek showing a high-water mark (silt line) from Tropical Storm Irene.

USGS station ID 01144000 White River near West Hartford, Vermont. Rainfall from Irene led to flooding throughout New England including here where floodwaters damaged Route 14. Note the debris line on the bridge rail, which is the river’s peak from the storm!

USGS station ID 01150900 Ottauquechee River at West Bridgewater, Vermont. Bridge and road damage was substantial throughout New England due to the intense rainfall. Amazingly, the USGS gage survived the storm!

High water from Tropical Storm Irene at going past the Housatonic River at Falls Village, CT (01199000) streamgage, park and boat ramp on the far side of river is inundated by the flood water.

USGS station ID 01075000 Pemigewasset River at Woodstock, New Hampshire. Onlookers observing the flooded river on August 28, 2011 from just across the gage house. https://waterdata.usgs.gov/monitoring-location/01075000/

Flood damage to Eunice Williams Road in Greenfield, MA on the Green River from tropical storm Irene on August, 28, 2011.

On Aug. 28th, 2011, this image was collected by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Aqua Satellite and shows the center of Tropical Storm Irene passing over New England. State borders and coastlines are shown as black lines.

USGS station ID 01077400 Cockermouth River near Groton, New Hampshire. On August 28, 2011, during Irene the river jumped its banks upstream of this road crossing at North Groton Rd. due to the significant rainfall during the storm.

In anticipation of coastal tidal storm surge from high winds associated with Tropical Storm Irene, USGS deployed a series of storm surge sensors along the New England coastline to monitor the severity of storm surge.

USGS hydrologist holding a dry erase board to identify the storm surge sensor location deployment on August 27, 2011. The sensor is strapped to the back of a dock piling on the Saugatuck River in Westport, CT owned by the Saugatuck River Rowing Club.

USGS hydrologist pointing to the location of a storm surge sensor deployment near the mouth of the Housatonic River in Stratford, CT at the Sikorsky aircraft facility on August 27, 2011.

Hydrologic Technicians strapping a water level sensor to a retaining wall piling in preparation for the arrival of Tropical Storm Irene and its storm surge. 

Another deployment type prior to Irene was a Rapid Deployment Gage established along Interstate 95 on Taylor River in Hampton, New Hampshire on August 26, 2011. The gage was installed to monitor river stage for potential flooding of the Interstate.

USGS station ID 01199000 Housatonic River at Falls Village, CT, the top photo is the river at a “normal” flow on March 30, 2017, and the bottom picture is the river on August 29, 2011, the day after Irene hit New England. This station is located at the outflow of a hydroelect

This photo shows USGS gaging station 01055000 on the Swift River near Roxbury, Maine. 

The USGS monitors the Narraguagus River at Cherryfield, Maine at a location called Cable Pool. This spot was once renowned for Atlantic salmon, where anglers would line the banks, waiting their turn to cast a line into the water.