East struggles to recover from Irene

Associated Press

KILLINGTON, Vt.

Running low on food and money, Vermont residents stranded by flooded roads relied upon provisions dropped by National Guard troops to get by Wednesday while the rest of the East Coast labored to recover from the wrath of the hurricane-turned-tropical storm known as Irene.

At Killington Elementary School, residents came for a free hot dog and corn-on-the-cob. Jason and Angela Heaslip picked up a bag filled with peanut butter, cereal and toilet paper for their three children and three others who are visiting from Long Island.

“Right now, they’re getting little portions because we’re trying to make the food last,” said Jason Heaslip, who only has a dollar in his bank account because the resort where he works hasn’t been able to pay him due to the storm.

One flooded Vermont town still remained totally cut off from the outside world Wednesday, and National Guard helicopters still were dropping supplies on storm-ravaged parts of the state. In places such as Killington, residents were banding together to keep the community functioning. Some volunteered tractors to help remove mud and debris, and those with working electricity were letting neighbors use their showers.

Nearly 2 million people remained without power in water-logged homes and businesses from North Carolina through New England, where the storm has been blamed for at least 45 deaths in 13 states. Raging floodwaters continued to ravage parts of northern New Jersey on Wednesday morning, even after the state’s rain-swollen rivers crested and slowly receded.