CHARLESTON, W.Va. — The National Weather Service has extended a flood watch for more than half of West Virginia’s counties through Wednesday morning.
Twenty-eight counties are under a watch for a slow-moving severe weather system. Heavy rainfall is possible Monday night, along with throughout Tuesday into the evening. The NWS warns that some areas, which have already received strong weather, could be susceptible for more severe flooding.
The counties under a watch are: Barbour, Boone, Braxton, Cabell, Calhoun, Clay, Doddridge, Gilmer, Harrison, Jackson, Kanawha, Lewis, Lincoln, Mason, Pleasants, Putnam, Ritchie, Roane, Taylor, Tyler, Upshur, Wirt, Wood, along with parts of Fayette, Nicholas, Pocahontas, Randolph, and Webster.
Lewis County is already waterlogged after heavy rainfall over the weekend. The county has been ravaged by flooding over the past couple of months. Lewis County Commissioner Agnes Queen said on MetroNews “Midday” that Sunday’s rain resulted in minor flooding; nothing too severe appeared to get into people’s homes during this particular storm.
Queen said that the southern and western parts of the county were the most affected.
“When we keep re-flooding, some of those individuals, especially when it runs off into their basements or to their homes, they might have minor flooding,” Queen said. “For those who are trying to clean up, it makes it very difficult, especially with all the moisture. They’re trying to dry their homes out, and they keep getting re-flooded; this is the fourth flood we’ve had.”
The flooding on July 21 caused widespread damage, warranting federal assistance through FEMA in the recovery. Queen said the latest storm is the third since July 21.
Queen said there are some power lines down throughout the county. She encouraged anyone with damages to document them through photos or videos if need be. She said there have been no reported injuries from the Sunday weather.
“None that I’m aware of at this point in time,” Queen said. “We do have a lot of roadways that are still blocked due to the trees down. I think it’s reported 30 trees down in the roadway area. They’re trying to clean that up, getting the power back on, that timeline keeps changing.”
As of Monday afternoon, there were 800 homes without power from the downed lines. She said that the estimated time for restoral keeps changing.
Queen said the community is still feeling the effects of the July 21 high water.
“We still have people, believe it or not, that have not mucked out their homes from July 21,” Queen said. “So, there’s still many people who thought they were OK, they could live in their homes, now they’re finding the floors are warped, the walls are covered in mold, so we’re getting to more and more of that, especially older individuals.”
There are always opportunities for volunteers to lend a helping hand. Queen noted.
“If there’s anybody out there that is still in that process of wanting to help carry out walls and floors, we could still use some of that help as well,” Queen said. “The community is a big thing. Some people are still using cleaning supplies and things of that nature, but again, it’s the older people that seemed to have thought they are OK, didn’t realize, thought somebody else was worse off than them.”
A positive sign of returning to normal occurred recently. Queen reported that 68 of the 133 businesses impacted by the July 21 storm have reopened. She said that three of the businesses permanently closed. For the rest, she said, the county is working hard to get those businesses back open.
“They’re getting there, they’re rebuilding, but that’s positive,” Queen said. “Right now, we have more businesses that were affected by the flood open than there are closed. We’ve crossed that threshold, so we’re excited about that.”