The small Vermont town had no direct warning about the hurricane moving northward up the East Coast. All of the weather reports had focused on the impact that the storm would have on states to the south, like New York, New Jersey, and Virginia. However, the storm took an unexpected turn and moved inland instead of out to sea. Joseph had lived through plenty of winter blizzards, but he had never seen or experienced a storm as severe as this one. The rain poured down so heavily that he could barely see across the yard to the big red barn beyond the house. The intense wind surprised him most. There were reports that it had reached speeds of more than 70 miles per hour. Joseph lay awake for much of the night listening to the howling wind outside. When Joseph stepped onto the porch the next morning, he was shocked to see how much debris had been left behind—piles of branches, smashed garbage cans, and broken boards from the tree house he had built with his grandfather many years ago. 1. What can the reader infer from the passage above?


Question 1 options:

The people of Vermont did not expect damage from the hurricane.


The damage in New York was much more severe than in Vermont.


Hurricanes hardly ever cause damage as far north as Vermont.


In Vermont, winter blizzards cause more damage than hurricanes.