A Look Back at the Floods of 1955
By Sam Kantrow on August 11, 2011, 12:00am
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It all started on August 11th, 1955 with the approach of Hurricane Connie. While it wasn’t a hurricane when it reached Connecticut, a soaking rain dropped between 4-6 inches across the state on August 13th. Causing moderate flooding, the worst was only beginning.
With rives levels already high, Hurricane Diane came through only one week later. After soaking up a huge amount of moisture from the Atlantic, Diane dropped between 13-20 inches of rain across Connecticut in only a few short days.
Waters reached 35 feet in Waterbury, and reports noted that water was moving at a rate of 50 mph. Thankfully, the Connecticut River had flood measures in place, but the smaller brooks and streams didn’t fair as well.
Sadly, after the waters began to subside, a few short months later another storm dropped an additional foot of rain on our state, causing the Housatonic River to reach its highest recorded level (24.5 feet). When all was said and done, 87 people lost their lives from 1955 flooding in Connecticut alone!
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