Pat Bradley

About 2,400 Vermont electric customers were already without power as winds from Hurricane Sandy began to flow across Vermont in the early stages of the storm on Monday.

As of 3 o’clock Monday afternoon, Vermont utilities said about 2,450 customers are without power, most in the state's four southern counties.  

Vermont Commissioner of Public Service Keith Flynn says power outages are likely in this storm.

The National Weather Service was predicting high winds from at least 6 p.m. Monday until at least  2 a.m. Tuesday.       

The Vermont Emergency Operations Center opened early Monday morning to track Hurricane Sandy and provide assistance to communities across the state.

Forecasters say winds could reach 60 to 80 mph Monday and Tuesday from the southern part of Vermont to the Canadian border. Those high winds are expected to be the main threat from the storm.  

Public Safety Commissioner Keith Flynn says many Vermonters are anxious about this storm in the aftermath of Tropical Storm Irene, and said the best way to deal with the anxiety is to be prepared.

One of the Lake Champlain ferry routes between Vermont and New York suspended crossings early on Monday because of strong winds from Hurricane Sandy.

The Lake Champlain Transportation Company said Monday's last trip of the ferry between Essex, N.Y. and Charlotte, Vt., was scheduled at 5:30 p.m. rather than the usual late evening crossing.

The company's 24-hour service between Grand Isle, Vt. and Cumberland Head, N.Y., continued to operate normally.

The Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Plant is preparing for Hurricane Sandy. North County Bureau Chief Pat Bradley spoke with Entergy Vermont Yankee Spokesman Rob Williams about how the plant is shoring up for the storm.

Plants receiving NRC enhanced oversight during the storm include Indian Point and Millstone.  NRC Region One Spokesperson Diane Screnci says that means they have sent at least an additional inspector to the plant.

Vermont Yankee has been in contact with the Vermont Commissioner of Public Safety regarding its hurricane plans.

Officials across New York’s North Country and Vermont are preparing for high winds from Hurricane Sandy.

Widespread power outages are anticipated due to Sandy’s winds in  northern New York and Vermont. On Monday morning, Essex County NY Director of Emergency Services Don Jaquist was preparing for an update from the National Weather Service on the storm.

A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit filed by the owner of the Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Plant against the state of Vermont.

Federal prosecutors say a Florida woman is facing charges she smuggled firearms to Canada by transferring them to a Canadian co-conspirator in a library that straddles the border between Vermont and Quebec.

Prosecutors say 46-year-old Annette Wexler of Gibsonton, Fla., was indicted Thursday by a grand jury sitting in Burlington.

She's charged with making false statements to firearms dealers in Florida, illegally exporting the guns to Canada and dealing firearms without a license.

A Vermont man charged with killing his former boss at the Brattleboro Food Co-op has pleaded guilty to second-degree murder.

Richard Gagnon entered the plea Friday in Vermont Superior Court.

A plea deal calls for a 17-year prison sentence.

Police say Gagnon brought a gun to work on the morning of Aug, 9, 2011 and shot and killed Michael Martin while Martin sat at his desk.

Martin was Gagnon's superior and Gagnon had received a critical work evaluation.

Gagnon previously had pleaded not guilty to a charge of first-degree murder.

Governor Peter Shumlin says he's confident he'll beat back a spirited challenge from Republican challenger Randy Brock and win election to a second term.

The Putney Democrat says he wants another two years to continue pushing to improve the state's economy and for his vision of a universal health care system that is as close to single-payer as Vermont can get.

One thing Shumlin says he won't do is tailor his remarks to what people want to hear.

Emergency response officials across Vermont are gearing up for Hurricane Sandy's expected landfall early next week.

Vermont is well away from the coastal areas expected to bear the brunt of the storm, but officials are still recovering from last year's Tropical Storm Irene, which devastated the state.

Public Safety Commissioner Keith Flynn outlined some of the state's preparations for the storm.