(Ed’s note: See a related story on Powder.com, from Quechee, Vt., HERE.)

By Tim Mutrie

The storm didn’t seem like much at the time. “It was not impressive. It was totally underwhelming. It was not a driving rainstorm. It was just constant. And it was constant for so long,” an old friend told me via cellphone yesterday from Killington, Vt. (pop. 1,095).

He’d been stuck up at the resort, along with hundreds of others, during Irene. “Couldn’t go east, couldn’t go west, couldn’t go north, couldn’t go south,” my friend said. The stranded visitors, including many flat-landers who fled places like New York City in hopes of dodging the storm, escaped Killington yesterday morning with help from authorities, ski resort employees and good Samaritans.

Surveying the scene yesterday, my friend said: “It’s totally nuts. It’s a disaster zone. I’ve never seen anything like this before.” He added, “Local shops are running low on food, especially beer.” He described debris piles with gas and propane tanks, high-voltage wires, trees and vehicles.

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