West Virginia Flooding Kills 20; Emergencies Declared in Two States

Weather Channel

Officials said at least 20 people have died in West Virginia after heavy rains flooded several towns, and states of emergency have been declared in both Virginia and West Virginia due to the devastating event that has been described as “complete chaos.”

“Roads destroyed, bridges out, homes burned down, washed off foundations,” said Greenbrier County Sheriff Jan Cahill. “Multiple sections of highway just missing. Pavement just peeled off like a banana. I’ve never seen anything like that.”  

West Virginia climatologist Kevin Law told USA Today that this is the third-deadliest flooding event on record for the state. A November 1985 flood that killed 38 ranked second-worst, and the 1972 Buffalo Creek flood that killed 125 was the worst in state history, the report also said.

The news came one day after at least 12 confirmed tornadoes touched down in northern Illinois, Indiana and Ohio Wednesday evening and Thursday morning, the National Weather Service said. Tens of thousands were left without power across the Midwest as a derecho swept through the region, leaving a trail of damage from Illinois all the way to Virginia.

Here are the latest impacts from these storms:

West Virginia

Flooding claimed at least 20 lives in West Virginia.

Eight-year-old Emanual Williams died Thursday at a West Virginia hospital after he slipped into a creek and was swept away by raging waters, The Intelligencer reported. Williams is the only fatality to be identified by authorities so far.

Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin expanded a state of emergency to 44 counties as heavy rain continued into the evening, WSAZ.com reported. Tomblin also authorized the deployment of the West Virginia National Guard to assist local emergency responders.

Some areas of the state are “probably looking at flooding that’s going to be the worst in 100 years,” said the governor’s communications director Chris Stadelman. Although some areas were evacuated, Stadelman said others had to be rescued.

“We had swift water rescue teams out until late last night and back out again his morning literally rescuing people from rooftops and upper stories of houses,” he said.

Emergency crews worked to rescue hundreds of people trapped at the Elkview Crossings Mall after the overpass bridge into the shopping annex was washed away by floodwaters.

The Kanawha County Emergency Ambulance Authority says they are estimating about 500 people are stuck in the plaza. Tomblin said crews are working to build a gravel road to reach those who are trapped.

White Sulphur Springs residents were left reeling as heavy flooding encroached the city, West Virginia Metro News says. Significant flooding knocked a home off of its foundation and it caught on fire, WSAZ-TV reported. The burning house was seen floating down Howard’s Creek.

One resident posted a heart-wrenching update to Facebook, saying, “Please pray for our neighbors. They are trapped in their attic with small children. Our other neighbors are on their kitchen counter..it has washed away the barn..cars..buildings. .flooded houses..My sister has lost her pets…it is devestating…please pray for our small town..’

“We surely need your prayers, because there’s a lot of people hurting right now,” Jim Justice, owner of the Greenbrier Resort, said during an interview on The Weather Channel.

In the town of Richwood, where a flash flood emergency was declared, homes and buildings were evacuated as water levels rose quickly Thursday afternoon, according to the Associated Press. Mayor Robert Johnson said the damage will be extensive in the wake of the storms.

“We pretty much live in a bowl, and the bowl filled with water, certainly,” he told the AP.

Several water rescues were underway Thursday near Jordan Creek, WSAZ reports. High water covering roads was reported in Marmet, Belle and Chesapeake.

The town of Clendenin also experienced severe flooding, and according to local reports, the town was only able to be reached by helicopter Thursday night.

High winds downed a tree onto a home with a person still inside in Charleston, WSAZ.com also said. The occupant was uninjured and the tree damaged the back of the residence. Wind damage was also reported near a Cabela’s retail store. One of the signs was blown down.

Just north of Charleston, a landslide occurred along Interstate 79, and a tractor trailer was reportedly damaged in the incident, according to the NWS.

Virginia

Officials say three emergency workers were injured during a water rescue in Alleghany County.

Botetourt County Battalion Chief Andrew Moore said by telephone Friday that one worker fell in the water during a rescue in Alleghany County on Thursday night. He says the worker is in critical but stable condition. He says two other workers hurt while rescuing their colleague received minor injuries and were released from a hospital.

Gov. Terry McAuliffe tweeted Thursday night that a state of emergency has been declared, allowing state agencies to bypass some time-consuming procedures to quickly help local governments.

Residents of downtown Covington, as well as low-lying areas of the city, were evacuated Thursday night to established shelters, WDBJ reported. Evacuations were ordered as the Jackson River neared record levels.

Roads were closed and several house fires were sparked by lightning as the storms pushed through the Commonwealth.

According to the Roanoke Times, a handful of roads were closed by flooding in Covington and Alleghany County, and a few other roads were shut down in Botetourt County, the state Department of Transportation said.

House fires were blamed on lightning in Read Mountain, Goode and Thaxton, the report added. No injuries were reported in those incidents.

Illinois

As many as 18 reports of tornadoes came in Wednesday night, and NWS survey crews headed out Thursday morning to conduct damage surveys along 3 separate supercell paths.

An EF2 tornado was spotted in Marseilles-Seneca Wednesday night, according to NWS. Two separate EF1 tornadoes were also reported that same night in West Brooklyn and Cissna Park.

Shortly before 10:30 p.m. CDT, a large tornado moved into the town of Pontiac, Illinois. The tornado, which the NWS has preliminarily rated an EF2, was left an 11-mile damage path.

The tornado ripped off the side of a Shell gas station, tossing mangled metal and wood around, ABC7 reports. Some pieces shattered the windows of parked cars. The glass hit one person, but the injuries were minor.

The driver of a semi parked at the gas station suffered a dislocated shoulder after the winds blew his truck over into its side, the station said.

Storm spotters reported seeing power flashes before much of the town of 12,000 lost power, and chasers who followed the storm into Pontiac saw destroyed mobile homes at a trailer park. According to the fire chief in Pontiac, two children inside a mobile home suffered minor injuries, WGN reports.

North of Ottawa, an EF0 tornado was confirmed by the NWS. The twister had maximum winds of 90 mph, measured 100 yards wide and stayed on the ground for 4.5 miles.

In the town of Seneca, fire crews were responding to reports of people trapped in a home, but nobody was believed to be injured inside the dwelling.

Area homeowner Jeff Maierhofer told ABC7 he and his family huddled together with several neighbors in the basement when the storm hit his farm, which dates back to the 1800’s.

“There’s lots of extensive damage to the farm. We’re not really sure about the house. There’s no power up there right now. Haven’t really been home because there’s powerlines around there,” he said. “Everybody’s fine. All the neighbors are fine. Everybody checked in with everybody. But there’s a lot of damage.”

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