At least 23 people have been killed after powerful storms swamped West Virginiaon Thursday night, forcing high water rescues across the state and leaving thousands of customers without power through Friday evening, officials said.
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-The state’s focus remains on search and rescue, and top priorities for those missions include Rainelle, Richwood, White Sulphur Springs and northern Kanawha County.
The governor had declared a state of emergency in 44 of 55 counties Thursday which authorized up to 500 National Guard soldiers to assist with rescue and cleanup efforts.
“The amount of rain that recently fell on parts of West Virginia and southern Virginia exceeded a once-in-a-century event for the specific area and resulted in catastrophic flooding in some communities”, noted AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Alex Sosnowski.
In White Sulphur Springs, some used heavy construction equipment to push through the debris and reach people trapped by high water. “It does not appear there are unaccounted for people in other counties, but it’s still a somewhat fluid situation”.
Mark Bowes, of White Sulphur Springs West Virginia, makes his way to the road as he cleans up from severe flooding.
Also Saturday, Tomblin asked federal authorities for a major disaster declaration to get help for Greenbrier and the two other counties hardest hit by flooding. The death was among those counted by the state medical examiner, the governor’s office said.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency said it was sending teams to help with damage assessments.
This is the third-deadliest flood on record in West Virginia, according to the West Virginia state climatologist Kevin Law.
Hundreds of people had to spend the night at the West Virginia Mall after the bridge that connects the facility to the mainland collapsed.
“It was kind of like a hurricane party”.
Television images portrayed raging rivers of water moving through towns.
Some areas have seen more than 9 inches of rain, and many people don’t have anywhere to go.
The dead included an eight-year-old boy who was swept away while walking along a creek bank with his mother and sister, local news station WSAZ reported.
Several hundred people were reportedly stranded at a shopping area because a bridge to the location had been washed away.
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Chris Stadelman, who’s Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin’s communications director, says some areas are “probably looking at flooding that’s going to be the worst in 100 years”. Charleston, the state capital, is in Kanawha, located in the southwestern part of the state.
