Local News

Storms, flooding take toll on Mid-Ohio Valley, West Virginia

PARKERSBURG - Heavy storms on Tuesday left people around the Mid-Ohio Valley and West Virginia dealing with power outages, blocked roads and flash flooding on Wednesday.

Gov. Patrick Morrisey declared a state of emergency in all 55 counties Tuesday evening, and volunteers, state workers and neighbors swung into action.

Morrisey was in Buckhannon Wednesday to survey flood damage with members of the West Virginia National Guard before providing an update on ongoing response and recovery efforts, according to a release from his office.

"Protecting lives and helping these communities recover remains our top priority," he said in the release. "While the worst of the weather has moved through, our work is far from over. We’ll continue searching for anyone who still needs help, restoring critical infrastructure, and supporting these communities for as long as it takes."

Volunteers from the American Red Cross of the Ohio River Valley were coordinating with their counterparts throughout the region to help those in need, said Sharon Kesselring, executive director of the Ohio River Valley chapter.

"We had two teams out for damage assessment in both Doddridge and Pleasants County," she said.

Meanwhile, cleanup kits were distributed in Ritchie County, where flooding was an issue, Kesselring said.

About 9,200 customers in the region lost electricity at the peak of the storm event, according to Will Boye, a spokesman for First Energy and Monongahela Power.

"We're working now to restore power as quickly and as safely as possible," he said Wednesday.

By late afternoon Wednesday, the number of customers without power was about 3,300 in Calhoun, Doddridge, Gilmer, Jackson, Ritchie, Roane, Tyler, Wetzel, Wirt and Wood counties, according to the First Energy outage maps.

Numerous crews from other utilities have been dispatched to West Virginia to make repairs, according to Boye.

Assessments of the extent of damage were being done to determine estimated restoration times, Boye said. Equipment damage was caused by the storm and fallen trees, he said.

"There was significant damage in some areas," Boye said.

Flooding also is impeding repairs, such as in the Weston and Buckhannon areas, he said.

"That makes things more challenging and slows things down," he said.

Most of the damage in this region was in Pleasants and Doddridge counties, according to the outage maps. Estimated restoration times varied from Wednesday evening to this afternoon.

By late afternoon Wednesday, about 1,150 of the nearly 4,000 customers in Pleasants were without power. Most were in St. Marys, about 1,050.

The highest percentage of customers remaining without electricity, over 34%, was in Doddridge County. About 1,240 of the 3,600 customers remained without electricity by late afternoon. More than 600 were in West Union and about 350 were in New Milton.

In Ritchie County, more than 320 customers of 6,400 remained without power. About 245 of 7,200 remained without power in Tyler County.

Twelve customers were listed without power in Wood County.

West Virginia residents impacted by Tuesday's flash flooding may contact their local conservation district to report debris blockages in streams, according to a release from the state Conservation Agency.

WVCA technicians have been deployed to assess the extent of flood-related debris blockages and damages and provide assistance to affected residents.

Residents may be eligible for Emergency Watershed Protection program assistance.

Residents should contact their specific conservation district to report a debris blockage:

* Calhoun, Ritchie, Roane, Wirt and Wood counties are within the Little Kanawha Conservation District, which can be reached at 304-422-9088.

* Pleasants, Tyler and Wetzel counties are in the Upper Ohio Conservation District, 304-758-2512.

* Doddridge County is in the West Fork Conservation District, 304-627-2160.

* Jackson County is in the Western Conservation District, 304-675-3054.

Kesselring said it's important for people impacted by the storms to contact their county emergency management agency, call 211 or go online at https://arcg.is/0LLOOG to notify the state of property damage. That will assist in securing a federal disaster declaration, she said.

The Red Cross is still assessing what is needed in Washington County.

Meanwhile, the local chapter is supporting shelters in Upshur County, which suffered rapid, massive and devastating flooding throughout the community that continued into Wednesday, Kesselring said.

The National Weather Service states that between 3 and 5 inches of rain had fallen in the area by 7:26 p.m. Tuesday. According to NWS hydrograph data, the Buckhannon River gauge was observed at 28.66 feet as of noon Wednesday, which pushes well past the stream's defined major flood stage of 26 feet.

Morrisey reported that, as of noon Wednesday, there had been 85 rescues involving the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources, with 310 National Guard personnel deployed, 19 National Guard/State Police helicopters on or available for rescue missions and three shelters operational.

Morrisey said no civilians were unaccounted for at noon and there had been no confirmed fatalities.

After midnight on Wednesday, the Uphsur County Commission proclaimed a local state of emergency due to the widespread flooding.

A little after 1 p.m. on Wednesday, the City of Buckhannon Water Department announced that there was a major water line break that has since been corrected; however, the flooding in the area made it hard for crews to find and deal with the break.

St. Joseph's Hospital announced Wednesday that clinic and outpatient appointments scheduled for that morning were canceled. Stonewall Jackson Memorial Hospital in Weston also canceled its outpatient appointments Wednesday.

The Upshur County Courthouse, Annex and Administrative Annex were closed on Wednesday, alongside multiple businesses on Main Street in Buckhannon.

Around 8:45 a.m. on Wednesday, the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office announced it would be sending a team of deputies to respond to the Upshur and Lewis county areas for emergency flood duties. The department’s office was to be a drop-off point for anyone wishing to contribute to supplies and manpower.

"The Sheriff’s Association has put together a response team, including those from Jackson County," Jackson County Sheriff Ross Mellinger stated in a video posted on social media. "I’m gathering up a team now to send up, including myself, and we’re going to take with us some supplies. Toiletries, water. The basic necessities of life that we all take for granted every day that these folks are no longer going to have for quite a while."

City Editor Evan Bevins, Staff Reporter Jess Mancini and Taylor McKinnie of the Inter-Mountain in Elkins contributed to this story.