On the night of Douglas Mason's 78th birthday, his house in Barre — and the 42 years of memories within it — came crumbling down.

It started with cracking sounds outside on July 11. But when trees started to come down and smash cars, Douglas and his wife, Rhoda, called 911. They were on the phone with the authorities when the house "imploded," the couple's son Devin Mason recounted to a reporter on Monday.

Part of the ceiling dropped three inches away from Rhoda, who fell to the floor. Douglas, a Vietnam veteran, was pinned to his chair.



The fire department was able to extract them from the house on Portland Street with a few of their photos and a bag of clothes. But the rest of the belongings in the house, which had been knocked 10 to 15 feet off its foundation, have been destroyed, according to Devin.

The house, which the Federal Emergency Management Agency has already declared a total loss, is one casualty of more than 50 landslides that have hit the state since July 11. The disasters, caused by the extreme amount of rain that has fallen in the state over a short period of time, have destroyed homes, injured people and, in at least one case, caused a large kerosene spill.

“Our biggest concern at this moment is the protection of human life,” said Ben DeJong, a geologist for the Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation.

He and the rest of the team have been reporting to sites that are at-risk, as well as places where slides have already happened. The hardest-hit spot has been Barre, parts of which sit on steep slopes. More than nine inches of rain have fallen in 10 days, leading the hills to become oversaturated and fail, DeJong said.

DeJong has visited some houses that have been destroyed or pushed as much as 40 feet from where they once stood. In one case, a 250-gallon kerosene tank at the base of a house in Barre City was turned upside down, and kerosene leaked into the basement.
Another home, in Ripton, was destroyed on July 15 when a slope failed, sending the residents fleeing and temporarily closing Route 125 through the hilly town.

DeJong and his team are still responding to sites that are showing signs of failure. He advised anyone who lives near a steep slope to remain vigilant until things dry up. People can also report warning signs online.

The majority of landslides occurred in the days following the flooding. Warning signs include tension cracks at the top of the slope and bulging soil at the base. DeJong warned against adding weight to try and stabilize the top of the slope, which he said only worsens the problem.

Trees that are tilted toward or away from the slope may be evidence that the soils beneath are starting to move. That does not, however, mean people should remove any vegetation, as roots are key to keeping the soil together, DeJong said.
Landslides do not necessarily correlate to the amount of rain or flooding a place receives, DeJong said. Montpelier, for instance, was hit hard by the flooding, but tends to have more bedrock near the surface, which acts as a structural feature that holds those slopes together.


For now, the Masons and others affected by the floods hope to receive FEMA aid, which maxes out around $41,000. The couple are staying with their children in surrounding Vermont towns; Devin also set up a GoFundMe to raise money for them.
He isn't sure exactly what the road ahead holds, but he hopes that eventually his parents can find a safe spot of their own.

Devin said nobody deserves that more than his parents, who raised him and his four siblings. The couple also have 14 grandchildren.

"They've supported everybody in one way or another with their love and being there when they're needed," Devin said. "So we're doing everything that we can to support them."