HUNTINGTON, W.Va. — A call for volunteers was going out in Huntington ahead of what was expected to be a week of cleanup work in the city neighborhoods hit by flash flooding following Thursday evening storms.
“It came up fast and went down fast, but it left a lot of mud behind,” said Huntington Mayor Steve Williams of the high water damage in the Enslow Park and Ritter Park areas, largely along Four Pole Creek.
A State of Emergency remained in effect in Huntington on Friday.
South of the city, a woman was killed when the vehicle she was a passenger in was swept away in high water on Green Valley Road, just off of Route 10. Two other people in that vehicle were rescued.
No deaths or serious injuries were reported in Huntington and, Williams said, no water rescues were needed within city limits as residents heeded warnings to stay put until waters receded.
“There were houses that were just islands to themselves,” the mayor said on Friday’s MetroNews “Talkline.”
According to city estimates as of Friday morning, water made it up into living spaces in 50 homes, while more locations saw water in garages and basements.
The flooded area stretched from Enslow Boulevard through Ritter Park and on to locations immediately to the west.
Representatives with the Federal Emergency Management Agency were scheduled to arrive in Huntington on Friday afternoon to assist with damage assessments.
“The overall damage is not as bad, certainly, as what we have seen in Greenbrier County and that area (from the June 23 flood), but it’s significant nonetheless. People’s lives again are being disrupted,” Williams said.
Williams said volunteers to help with flood cleanup were most in demand.
Heading into Friday afternoon, a station for volunteer check-ins and medical services was being set up near the intersection of Huntington’s 15th Street and Washington Boulevard.
A group of church volunteers, known as Helpington, were part of the flood response.
For those flooded, “This is major to them and, if somebody has time to be able to come and offer some elbow grease, that absolutely would be helpful,” Williams said.
Much of the Interstate 64 Corridor, between Huntington and Charleston, saw heavy rain in Thursday’s storms. Several inches of rain fell in places, according to meteorologists with the National Weather Service.