Truck Swept Away in Vermont Flooding Before Hitting Bridge, Video Shows

A Lays chips truck has been caught on camera being carried downstream by rapid flood waters before smashing into the side of a bridge as heavy rains caused widespread flooding across Vermont.

The footage, which first emerged on social media on Tuesday, is among many showing the disruption and destruction the "historic and catastrophic" flooding has caused in the state. On Monday, Governor Phil Scott said the floodwaters had already surpassed what Vermont experienced during Storm Irene in 2011.

The moment was captured from multiple angles as the branded lorry careered unguided down the Stevens Branch River before crashing into the Prospect Street bridge in Barre, a town to the southeast of the capital, Montpelier.

Onlookers gasp as the truck approaches the bridge, before a loud bang can be heard. When the crash occurs, a child can be seen holding their head in their hands.

Newsweek approached Frito Lay via email for comment on Wednesday.

At the same time, footage from Ludlow, a small town in central Vermont, showed a rail bridge that had been nearly completely washed away by the storm waters.

Melissa Cooney, a reporter with local news channel WCAX, who first published the footage, said that around 100 yards of track had been eroded by the flood waters, which continued to pour towards the center of town underneath while excavators got to work.

The town's municipal manager, Brendan McNamara, told NPR that "the onion isn't even peeled back at all right now" when it came to understanding the amount of damage the flooding had caused, adding: "I'm up and down Main Street because that's what we can access, and it is not good."

He told the Associated Press that Ludlow was without a water treatment plant and its main supermarket is shut.

In its latest forecast for the state, the National Weather Service said the rains over Vermont have dissipated for the time being, while a storm front that was due to pass over Barre a short while ago made little impact on rain levels.

But rushing flood waters still pose a danger to residents as they continue to run off from higher ground.

Emergency crews from Vermont, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), and other states have been conducting search and rescue operations for those stranded. Vermont Emergency Management told AP on Tuesday that over a hundred rescues had taken place.

In a tweet on Tuesday, Governor Scott said the "devastation and flooding we're experiencing across Vermont is historic and catastrophic." However, he added: "Whether during Irene, COVID, or other hardships, we have proven time and time again we're willing and able to step up and help our neighbors. We will again."

The NWS expects more "widespread" showers and thunderstorms to arrive late on Thursday and continue into the weekend, bringing the potential for excessive rainfall and further flooding in parts.

So far there have been no reported deaths or injuries in Vermont. One person who died earlier in the week trying to escape her flooded home in New York has been identified as 43-year-old Pamela Nugent.