Flooding causes partial dam break in Norwich, numerous road closures around CT

Flooding from heavy rains overnight and melting snow caused a partial dam break in Norwich on Wednesday and the closure of numerous roads throughout Connecticut.

The dam breakage was reported on the Yantic River north of the Bean Hill Substation, leading to the substation needing to be taken offline and a disruption to power for about 5,000 customers, according to Norwich Public Utilities. The substation needed to be taken offline to avoid “potentially catastrophic damage to our infrastructure,” the public energy provider said.

According to the Connecticut Division of Emergency Management and Homeland Security, residents on nearby Stockhouse Road in Bozrah were evacuated as a precaution because of an incident at the Fitchville Pond Dam.

Flooding reported across various areas in the state came following heavy rains overnight Tuesday and into Wednesday that were preceded by a winter storm that dumped several inches of snow to much of Connecticut over the weekend.

According to the National Weather Service, a flood warning was issued Wednesday for Hartford and Tolland Counties. The warning included the Farmington River and the Pawcatuck River, which runs along the Connecticut border with Rhode Island.

The NWS also warned that the flooding of smaller rivers, streams and other low-lying and flood-prone locations is imminent.

“Runoff from the earlier heavy rain and snowmelt will continue to result in flooding of small rivers and streams,” the NWS said. “Many gages continue to indicate smaller rivers and streams still rising.”

Melting snow and heavy rains combined to cause flooding on numerous municipal and state roads, leading to several road closures.

According to the state Department of Transportation, state roads closed Wednesday morning because of flooding included portions of Route 10 in Southington, Route 75 in Windsor, Route 54 in Redding, Route 806 in Danbury, Route 7 in New Milford, Route 317 in Roxbury, Route 171 in Woodstock, Route 101 in Pomfret, Route 85 in Heron, Routes 207 and 289 in Lebanon, Routes 82 and 354 in Salem, Route 32 in Franklin, Route 7 in Ridgefield, Route 97 in Sprague, Route 151 in East Hampton, Route 202 in Washington, Route 163 in Bozrah, Route 169 in Lisbon, Route 47 in Woodbury and Route 207 in Redding.

A number of schools were closed Wednesday, including those in Bozrah, Danbury, Franklin and Norwich.

According to Dep. Superintendent of Bristol Public Schools Michael Dietter, school closings in his district included Bristol Eastern and Central high school, Bristol Arts and Innovation Magnet School, Bristol Preparatory Academy, Northeast Middle School and Chippens Hill Middle School. Other schools in the city operated on a two-hour delay.

Schools in Bethel, East Haddam and Preston also had a two-hour delay.

As of the late morning, Eversource reported that 5,948 of its customers were without power. This included 1,257 customers in Canton. The energy company serves 1,308,153 in Connecticut.

Earlier this week, Eversource President of Electric Operations in Connecticut Steve Sullivan said the heavy rains and melting snow on grounds that were already saturated, combined with strong wind gusts, would likely cause downed trees and limbs onto power lines. Hundreds of line and tree crews were prepositioned around the state in advance of the storm, according to Eversource.

United Illuminating in the late morning reported 31 customers without power, including 10 in Milford. The power company serves 344,590 customers in Connecticut.