Tropical Storm Irene slams the Connecticut Coast! Photos!

I still have Power! As Hurricane Irene slowly moved up the coast into New England, we prepared for a week without electricity. Connecticut even set an all time record power outage today (August 28, 2011) with more than 500,000 customers without power, yet mine is still on. I am very lucky to have access to not only electricity but the Internet as well! Add in the bonus that I got to ride by the beaches to take some photographs and now have Internet access to share! The following photos are ones I took in Milford, CT this afternoon at high tide right as the center of what is now Tropical Storm Irene moved to the west of us. The pictures are impressive, especially since the coast line is use to waves no bigger than two feet. Long Island sound is usually calm due to the protection of Long Island but when storms move up the coast in the right way we can get storm surge like we did today. Some early estimates say today's storm surge which is still receiving is close to that of Hurricane Gloria in 1985 and that of a winter storm in 1992. I have more photos i will post later under different subjects, including photographs of fallen trees and more coastal flooding! Check out more photos of the storm under Hurricane Irene Slams Connecticut! more Photos! and More Photos from Hurricane Irene in Connecticut.

The above photo of the the flooded parking lot is an example of storm surge. The accumulated water is not from the heavy downpours of rain but from Long Island Sound rising up above the beach and across the road. Learn more about STORM SURGE HERE!