CASCADE, W.Va. — Emergency officials continue to monitor the water levels at a earthen dam structure in Preston County.
Officials with the state DEP, Monongalia County Emergency, and Preston County Emergency Management have worked to lower water levels around a dam structure near Route 7 in Cascade after a Thursday afternoon rain.
According to Preston County Emergency Management Floodplain Manager Clark Nicklow, one inch of rain dropped in the North Central West Virginia area over the course of a couple of hours, which prompted immediate action to address the dam that was seeping into the road.
“As of yesterday afternoon, they decreased the water level by about six feet behind the dam,” said Nicklow. “For the severity, the seepage has all but stopped, I believe they did say that it had ceased at the toe of the dam or the bottom of the dam, so it’s all good news as far as that’s concerned.”
According to Nicklow, water levels behind the dam reached a point where sediment-laden seepage was seen heading into parts of Route 7 late Thursday afternoon. In response, Preston County Emergency Management worked with property owners of the Preston Coal & Coke location where the dam resides, where over 10 feet of water were pumped out over the course of 12 hours. Those efforts are expected to continue after water levels dropped over 5 feet overnight.
“The main concern was Route 7 itself, right before the county line at the picnic tables where it crosses the road,” said Nicklow on WAJR’s Talk of the Town. “It probably would have been pretty devastating to Route 7 there.”
Once water levels receded, Nicklow confirmed the state DEP as well as Preston County emergency officials will work to determine the best course of action to address the earthen dam structure. Based on preliminary findings, the original structure was used to support energy infrastructure that has since been discontinued, with the remaining earthen structure dam determined to have been created by beavers over the past several months. The goal is to find a long-term solution for the structure once water recedes.
“I think they’re making a determination of what they want to do, whether they want to remove it totally or if they want to try to do some other kind of mitigation measure,” said Nicklow. “I don’t think they’ve reached their decision yet.”
The water levels around the earthen dam structure are expected to continue to recede heading into the weekend. This is aimed at avoiding any potential overflows that could affect residents in the Dellslow area, as well as residents living around Deckers Creek.
“I believe the property owner is going to follow the suggestion of the West Virginia DEP, keep pumps in 24-7 monitoring of the dam, and keep it (the water) pumped down,” said Nicklow.