Today’s rain could be the push the ice jam on the Connecticut River in Haddam needs to melt and break apart near the East Haddam swing bridge. Should it melt, it could help the U.S. Coast Guard loosen up the jam – an operation they’ve spearheaded for more than a week.
On Tuesday afternoon, the Route 82 swing bridge between Haddam and East Haddam will be opening to allow Coast Guard ice cutters through to work. The bridge will be closed and drivers are urged to use alternate routes.
“It’s kind of scary in a way. I worry about the bridge – the pilings on the bridge, if they’re going to be disturbed by the ice and that kind of a thing,” Kathy Sewell said while looking at the water just north of the East Haddam swing bridge.
It’s too early to decipher all of the damage the ice jam has created, but Haddam officials and locals – like Bill Hutchings, of Deep River – said the rain is creating a game of wait-and-see.
“With the rain and the changing of the temperature, hopefully it’ll start to loosen up and be on its way down the river,” Hutchings said. “Hopefully it’ll regress at a speed that won’t hold anything up and be on its way.”
In case the water begins flooding, Haddam is staying in a state of emergency. The first selectman said the American Red Cross is on standby to provide shelter if families are forced out. Haddam firefighters and EMS crews are prepared to go door-to-door to help anyone affected by potential flooding.
So long as visibility holds, U.S. Coast Guard tugboats Pendant and Hawser will stay out on the water today, breaking the ice toward Selden State Park. Without an aerial view from the Connecticut Civil Air Patrol – because of the rain – they can only navigate by what they see on the water.
“I think at this point, they’re doing all they can,” Hastings said. “Now we have the fog business here, so as far as the air support, that’s going to be a hard thing to see today.”
