PAX, W.Va. — Fayette County authorities are reporting a flood-related death.
Sheriff Jess McMullen said a woman’s body was found Monday after she was swept away in high water at Pax on Sunday.
McMullen said witnesses told deputies the woman was in a vehicle and made a wrong turn into an area impacted by rapidly rising floodwaters.
McMullen said as the current swept away the vehicle a tree branch broke the vehicle’s glass. The woman attempted to get out of the vehicle but she was swept away.
First responders were unable to locate the body Sunday. They had to cut the search short because of another round of severe weather. The sheriff’s office drone unit located the body Monday.
McMullen said the death serves as a tragic reminder.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with this woman’s family during this extremely difficult time. This is a tragic reminder of how quickly flood waters can become deadly,” McMullen said. “If you encounter water covering a roadway, do not attempt to drive through it. Turn around and find another route. The water may be deeper, faster and more dangerous than it appears.”
The victim’s name has not been released.
Fayette County damage widespread
The flood damage in Fayette County is widespread, according to Fayette County Office of Emergency Services Director Jack Kincaid.
“Right now we know of Mount Hope, Pax, Kanawha Falls, anywhere and everywhere,” Kincaid told MetroNews Monday. “If there weren’t an issue with floodwaters there were downed trees and downed power lines. We got it pretty good.”
Kincaid said there were several inches of rain in a very short period of time.
“There’s no rhyme or reason to it—-it hits and you’re just lucky if you get out of it,” he said.
Filling out damage survey forms will prove important when it comes to a possible disaster declaration. Kincaid said local fire departments have the forms and you can also found links on the county’s Facebook pages.
“All the (fire) chiefs have them (the surveys) now. I’m pretty sure it’s a major disaster,” Kincaid said.
Animal Shelter bridge damage
Fayette County Animal Shelter Director Maria Boles was on the phone Monday trying to line-up at least temporary homes for 35 dogs and 17 cats after the access bridge to the shelter was destroyed in Sunday’s flash flooding.
“We’re just trying to move the animals until they can get the access point built back,” she said.
The animals are fine. Water from raging Laurel Creek near Beckwith did not get into the building. The steel frame of the bridge is left. Boles and others had to get creative to get across it after the rain stopped Sunday morning.
“The neighbor, Pam Bailey, she came down and my husband came down with the side-by-side and we stretched a rope across from one end to the other and me and some of the other volunteers kind of tight-roped it across there and we were able to take care of everybody before the second storm hit,” she said.
Some metal plates have been placed across the bridge now for foot traffic.
Boles said it’s the third time the bridge has been knocked out since 2001.
“We need a better alternative or a better access point to the facility,” she said.