(Editorial - Graphic Illustration - MetroCreativeConnection)

Mountain State officials have struggled to get residents to understand we are going through a real crisis — and have been since March 2020. Last week, they tried a new strategy, as retired National Guard Maj. Gen. James Hoyer compared the death toll from the June 2016 floods to the death toll (so far) of the COVID-19 pandemic.

During the devastating flooding five years ago, 23 people were killed. Everyone agrees that event was truly tragic. By Wednesday of last week, 3,642 West Virginians had died of COVID-19 since March 2020. Hoyer put it this way: We are going through the equivalent of 158 2016 flood events.

“We’ve got to get people educated and we’ve got to get vaccinated so that doesn’t go up to 200 or 300,” Hoyer said. “So West Virginia, please get educated on the value of the vaccine and get vaccinated.”

Gov. Jim Justice took the plea even further.

“We’re going to lose a bunch of more people, West Virginia. There’s no question about that,” Justice said. “Absolutely, for them, for respect for them, I truly believe that all we’ve got, all we can possibly do to stop this is to get vaccinated.”

Note his use of future tense. “We’re GOING to …” This is something we can see coming, and we know precisely how to stop it. That was not the case with the 2016 floods. If it had been, we would have done all in our power to stop it.

What is different now, when the stakes are so much higher? Thousands of West Virginians are dead. Thousands of families are suffering with their loss. Why aren’t those with the power to stop this monster taking action?

Their excuses get flimsier by the day. As the death toll mounts, those who are pretending they are making a political stand or buying in to nonsense conspiracy theories by failing to do the right thing assume more and more responsibility for those deaths.

It is too late for more than 3,600 people. It is not too late to make the difference for potentially thousands more.