Resilient Yantic River

On the morning of January 10, 2024, a high volume of rain fell on existing snow in a part of Connecticut that had already been experiencing a winter season of repeated rainfall. These conditions caused the Yantic River to flood. Reports of a partial failure of the Fitchville Pond Dam in Bozrah, upstream of Norwich, added another layer of risk. The flooding that the Yantic corridor experienced was independent of the conditions at the dam. However, a dam failure would have released even more water all at once and with high and terrible speed. In response, a local evacuation order was put in place alongside a federal emergency declaration affecting the area from the Bozrah town line to the Falls Mill Apartments. Hundreds of Bozrah and Norwich residents evacuated. Flood waters damaged structures, closed roadways, and prompted emergency rescues. About 5,000 customers lost power when the Bean Hill substation was taken offline due to flood risk.