3 dead in New Hampshire flooding

CONCORD, N.H., Oct. 10 (UPI) -- At least three people died in New Hampshire when 11 inches of rain burst dams and sent rivers over their banks in southern and central part of the state.

Jim Ray of the New Hampshire Department of Transportation told WCVB-Channel 5 in Boston that his rain gauge overflowed at 10 ½ inches.

"Everything got saturated and the drainage system just couldn't handle it," Ray said.

Gov. John Lynch visited Keene in the southwest corner of New Hampshire, the worst hit area. On Sunday, the governor declared a state of emergency and dispatched 500 National Guard members to flooded areas.

Two of the dead, Steven Day of Unity and Ashley Gates of Claremont, were found in their car a few feet from a washed-out bridge over the Little Sugar River in Unity.

Emergency workers found another body in the Cold River in Alstead.

In Keene, water rose as much as 6 feet, forcing nearly 1,000 people to evacuate their homes.

Meanwhile, the National Weather Service has predicted at least two more storms in New England this week that could produce enough rain to cause additional flooding New Hampshire and threaten riverside towns in Western Massachusetts, eastern Vermont and parts of Connecticut.