It's been a while since we had a serious ice jam flood in Connecticut. In January 1994 a rapid January thaw following a bitterly cold month caused all sorts of problems. As the snow melted and the rain fell rivers rose rapidly and huge chunks of ice broke apart across the state.
On the Pomperaug River in Southbury a 2.5 mile ice jam lasted for weeks sending the river surging into neighborhoods. In Baltic the Shetucket River was jammed for about a mile flooding 75 homes and businesses in the Sprague village.
The National Weather Service estimated nearly a foot of ice is on our local rivers which is unusual for Connecticut. This is the kind of ice you'd expect to see in Vermont, New Hampshire or Maine. Heavy rain and melting snow means ice jams are unsually likely in Connecticut. Hopefully these ice jams occur in rural areas or, even better, don't occur at all!
Be on the lookout for sudden rises in rivers over the weekend as ice jams can develop across the state.
