ELKINS, W.Va. — Officials with the U.S. Forest Service hoped to have the Monongahela National Forest fully in service for the Fourth of July holiday. Part of the Forest was impacted by Sunday’s sudden flash floods, and damage assessment continued on Tuesday.
“Currently we have no closures on the forest,” said Incident Commander John Fry. “We have assessment teams going out into these areas where there could have been damage.”
Fry said Forest Service personnel are evaluating roads, culverts, and campgrounds to insure visitors are able to get in and out of areas safely.
Whites Run Road, one of the access roads into the Spruce Knob area, is the only road which has been closed due to the washout. The damage was to a culvert in Pendleton County which took out part of the road. There are alternative routes into the Spruce Knob area.
The biggest issue is the Seneca Rocks Discovery Center which faces a couple of problems.
“We have a broken water line so Seneca Rocks is closed temporarily until we can identify where it’s broken,” said Fry. “Also we have dirt and storm debris that washed up into the parking lot. We’ve got crews there working to get that open by the Fourth of July.”
Fry said it was unlikely the broken water line would be repaired in time for the holiday and anticipated crowds. There are tentative plans to open the Discovery Center without water and portable toilets would be put into place for guests.
“We don’t want to impact the experience of visit the Forest anymore than we have to,” Fry said.