Feb 15, 2012 — More than five months after tropical storm Irene sent floodwaters surging through the Adirondacks, families and communities still face some tough decisions.

Tomorrow night in the town of Jay, residents will meet with state and Federal officials to talk about a buy-out program that could help people relocate out of the flood plains along the Ausable and Boquet Rivers. The meeting to talk about the flood plain buy out program is scheduled for 7 pm tomorrow night at the Jay town community center in Ausable Forks.

More than sixty families in Essex County have expressed interest in the buy-out. Brian Mann checked in yesterday with Randy Douglas, town supervisor in Jay and head of the county's board of supervisors. Douglas says the number of people considering relocation continues to grow.  Go to full article

Keene Valley, NY, Feb 06, 2012 — River and stream rehabilitation is under way in communities hit hard by Tropical Storm Irene last year. But officials say a lot of work still remains to be done to put things right.

Lawmakers, local politicians and state officials joined state Department of Environmental Conservation Commissioner Joe Martens in Keene Valley last week to inspect stream restoration work on Johns Brook.

Local works crews did emergency repairs immediately following Irene, but environmental specialists said additional work was needed to restore fish and wildlife habitats and protect against future flooding. Chris Morris went along for the inspection.  Go to full article

Upper Jay, NY, Jan 27, 2012 — An Adirondack community welcomes the return of its library this weekend, after months of repair work. The doors of the Wells Memorial Library in Upper Jay will reopen on Saturday as part of a day-long celebration. Five months ago, heavy flooding damaged the library after Hurricane Irene.

The library's board president, Marie-Anne Azar Ward, says flood waters ruined a majority of the library's books, and nearly all the children's collection was destroyed.

Azar Ward says the community rolled-up its collective sleeves and went to work repairing the 106-year old building. The re-opening celebration, with music and food, starts at 1 o'clock Saturday afternoon.  Go to full article

Montpelier, VT, Jan 13, 2012 — Vermont Governor Peter Shumlin addressed the state legislature Thursday with his proposed budget for the coming fiscal year. With federal funds factored in, the budget totals around $6.7 billion.  Go to full article

Jan 06, 2012 — Governor Andrew Cuomo used his state of the state address yesterday to lay out a broad new vision for improving emergency and flood response planning.

The governor called for dozens of flood-control projects to move forward. The plan drew praise from Adirondack leaders still reeling from tropical storm Irene. But as Brian Mann reports, towns say they also need more direct financial aid.  Go to full article

Montpelier, VT, Jan 04, 2012 — The Vermont legislature convened in Montpelier yesterday for the first day of the 2012 legisaltive session. It's session is expected to be a busy one, with lawmakers determining how to fill a multi-million dollar budget gap and recover from Tropical Storm Irene.  Go to full article

Jan 02, 2012 — 2012 is officially underway, but for towns along the Ausable River, there's still a lot of work ahead cleaning up from the floods of 2011. Communities were hit hard by heavy spring rains last year, and then slammed by tropical storm Irene in late summer.

Brian Mann checked in last week with Bill Ferebee, town supervisor in Keene. Ferebee says a lot of progress has been made restoring normalcy in the Ausable Valley. But fears remain that more floods could come next spring.  Go to full article

Washington, DC, Dec 28, 2011 — FEMA has already paid out more than $150 million to New Yorkers who were affected by tropical storms Irene and Lee. And more financial help is on the way for state and local governments.  Go to full article

Albany, NY, Dec 28, 2011 — A plan by Federal officials to shut down river gauges on the Ausable and the Boquet Rivers is drawing criticism from scientists and politicians.  Go to full article

Dec 22, 2011 — A new state law aims to help property owners hurt by storms earlier this year.

The Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee Assessment Relief Act was signed by Gov. Andrew Cuomo earlier this month.

It lets local governments and school districts provide tax relief - including refunds - to people whose property was significantly devalued by the storms in late August and early September.

But as Chris Morris reports, some local governments may not implement the law without financial assistance from the state.  Go to full article