CONCORD, N.H. — Drenching rain and high winds lashed New Hampshire on Sunday from a weakened but still dangerous Tropical Storm Irene.

More than 150,000 homes and businesses lost power and utilities expected those numbers to rise as the winds continued into the night before the storm exited. Portsmouth reported a wind gust of 63 mph, said meteorologist John Jensenius of the National Weather Service in Gray, Maine.

Additional Photos

A pedestrian uses a beach umbrella to keep off the rain from Tropical Storm Irene on Sunday in Barre, Vt. Elsewhere in the state, a young woman was missing after she was swept away by the Deerfield River in the southern Vermont town of Wilmington. The Associated Press

Despite help from utilities as far away as Illinois and from Canada, some people could be without power for several days. “This almost certainly will be a multi-day event,” said Alec O’Meara, spokesman for Unitil.

Crews worked as the storm raged, but utilities said they would pull them in if it became too dangerous. The good news was that after Irene ends, crews will have several days of sunny weather to make repairs. Two dozen shelters planned to be open Sunday night, but it was unclear given the warm temperatures how many people would use them.

Jim Van Dongen, a spokesman for the state Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management, said 11 shelters opened Saturday night but only 15 people took advantage of them.

“It’s not like this is December and a two week-long ice storm with temperatures of 20 below,” he said.

Gov. John Lynch urged people to stay off the roads and beaches Sunday unless it was an emergency as the storm intensified. Lynch also urged people who don’t feel safe at home or who have lost power to seek alternate shelter.

Hampton police tried to stop people from going onto beaches, but coastal Route 1A through Rye, North Hampton and Hampton had moderate traffic Sunday afternoon.

“The oceans, rivers and lakes are extremely dangerous places to be right now. People should not jeopardize their own lives, or the safety of first responders, by going swimming, surfing or boating or clogging ocean roads,” New Hampshire State Police Col. Robert Quinn said.

Bruce, Brenda and Brooke Wilson of Derry said they had never been to the ocean during a storm and were impressed with the crashing surf along the seawall on North Beach in Hampton.

Though Irene had weakened, Brenda was impressed with the storm’s power after seeing the waves. “I’ve never seen anything like this,” she said.

Chris and Chelsea Gilbert came to Hampton Beach after losing power in their Concord home. Chris Gilbert said the storm was not as bad as he had expected. On the ride to the beach, he said they saw a few downed tree branches and toppled trees.

Van Dongen said several dozen roads were closed due mostly to rising water. Rivers prone to flooding were being watched, but Van Dongen said they might not flood if rainfall amounts didn’t rise.

WMUR reported that water flowed over the top of a dam in Campton, forcing evacuation of a trailer park and elderly housing unit below the dam.

Jensenius said rainfall amounts ranged from 2 to 3 inches in southeastern New Hampshire to 3 to 6 inches in the western part of the state. Higher amounts fell on the mountain slopes, he said.

No deaths were attributed to the storm, but state emergency management officials said people in Bedford and Wolfeboro were seriously injured by flying tree limbs while cleaning up storm damage.

Manchester-Boston Regional Airport had no incoming or outgoing flights, but deputy airport director Brian O’Neill said he expects service to resume this morning.

“The airlines proactively canceled Sunday operations,” O’Neill said. He said travelers should check with the airlines today.

Some frustrated travelers called C&J Bus Lines in Portsmouth looking for passage to New York City, said spokeswoman Jamie Lesniak. She said the bus, which offers service between New Hampshire and New York, was adding a 30-seat bus today to accommodate them.

Some communities were uncharacteristically quiet for a summer Sunday. Only a few breakfast and coffee shops were open in Portsmouth.

Yalcin Kaya, owner of Kaffee Vonsolin in Portsmouth, said his was one of the few places open. He said people overreacted and stayed home.

“I think it’s days and days of being scared by the media,” he said. “This isn’t even a bad storm.”

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