On Wednesday morning, some areas of West Virginia in the United States experienced severe flooding due to a powerful storm bringing over 7 inches of rainfall to the central and northern parts of the state. The National Weather Service (NWS) categorized the flood warning for this event as a “Particularly Dangerous Situation” (PDS), a level reserved for the most extreme and life-threatening flash flood events. Emergency responders have received hundreds of calls for help.
In Weston, where flooding occurred, Route 79 remains closed on Wednesday morning. Earlier, Governor Patrick Morrisey had declared a state of emergency for all 55 counties in the state on Tuesday night, with 100 National Guard members scheduled to arrive in the hardest-hit counties that evening. The Governor’s office issued disaster preparedness statements earlier that day to prepare for the impending severe weather.
There have been no reports of deaths or serious injuries at this time.
Emergency responders reported receiving hundreds of distress calls following flash flooding in Lewis County, Randolph County, and Upshur County.
Starting from Tuesday afternoon, Upshur County received over 7 inches of rainfall within approximately 6 hours. Governor Morrisey stated that the West Virginia Department of Natural Resources conducted at least 33 water rescues on Tuesday.
Due to the “rapid escalation of the dangerous situation,” a mandatory evacuation order was issued for parts of Buckhannon in the early hours of Wednesday.
The Lewis County Commission stated that due to extensive flood damage to public infrastructure, private properties, roads, bridges, culverts, utilities, and other critical facilities, local officials declared a state of emergency authorizing the Office of Emergency Management to coordinate all available local resources and request additional assistance from the state Emergency Management Division and, if necessary, from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
Authorities have responded to dozens of homes submerged by floods and impassable roads.
In addition to rescue efforts, water levels in Sand Run near Buckhannon in north-central West Virginia have surged to historic levels. Preliminary river data shows that the water level rose over 8 feet (about 2.5 meters) in less than five hours, reaching a peak of over 10.63 feet (about 3.24 meters), breaking the previous record of 8.34 feet set during one of the region’s worst floods in 1985.
State Senator Ben Queen of the twelfth district of West Virginia expressed in a statement, “Tonight, please pray for our rescue workers. In central West Virginia, they navigate through the pitch-black night illuminated only by the lights of trucks, boats, and rescue equipment. Roads they travel on have been washed away, boats enter turbulent waters filled with debris and hidden dangers.”
Officials urge residents to avoid flooded roads and comply with all evacuation orders and emergency directives as the flood emergency situation continues.
In addition to the flooding, multiple tornado warnings were issued in the northwestern corner of the state on Tuesday night.
(This article referenced reporting from Fox Weather.)