As most of us probably know, an awful flood swept across southern West Virginia and parts of western Virginia last Thursday, killing 20+ people, with several still missing. The originally forecasted 1.5 inches of rain turned into 8-10 inches in less than a day. It is being described as a 1000-year event.
As a lifetime resident of Greenbrier County, West Virginia, I have never witnessed anything like this. Every so often the Greenbrier River and feeding creeks will flood a little bit and people along their banks have to evacuate, but we have never had a flash flood, nor have we seen a flood of this magnitude since the 1980s. Houses have been swept away, roads have been washed away, people have died, people are still missing, and 44 of the 55 counties in the state are under a state of emergency.
I would like to ask the members of The Key Play to keep the victims of this awful tragedy in your thoughts and prayers. Thank you very much!
Comments
Here here. Im pissed at myself for not catching some of the signs... Wasnt a lot of chatter going on about it. Hope everyone is ok
More rain expected?
Yes. Flash flood watch till midnight.
Definitely a big system coming through
weatherman catching signs:
sorry, I respond to serious situations with humor because they make me so uncomfortable. I do hope the missing are brought home safely and that there is comfort for those who have lost loved ones.
For those inclined to help, Bull & Bones posted this to their Facebook page:
You can drop off bottled water, toiletries, and non-perishable food items at B&B.
This whole flood just kinda came out of nowhere for me. Fortunately my hometown managed to escape the worst of it, but seeing the destruction and losses throughout a large portion of the state is very saddening.
I will say though, that I can't be more proud of my home state for how they're handling the situation. Everyone is coming together to help one another, and they'll make it through this.
Did they ever get the mall evacuated?
Yeah, they built a temporary road and evacuated most of the people. Some didn't want to leave, fearing nothing to go to and the devastation in general.
I went through White Sulpher Springs on Saturday on my way to pick up my son from Summit Bechtel Reserve over near Beckley. It was bad. On my way back on Sunday, you could see Fire and Rescue trucks down by the creek near that exit off I-64. It was a somber moment.
Was just in White Sulphur for work. Absolute devastation.
If anyone would like to donate:
https://www.gofundme.com/2bbafg6k
I spent the morning doing flood damage assessment in Alleghany County, Va. The water was 2 feet above the 100 flood elevation in spots.
On top of it all, the PGA had to cancel the Greenbrier Classic, which is one of the area's bigger revenue generators annually, so for an area struggling to recover, another punch in the gut in terms of financial well being.
http://espn.go.com/golf/story/_/id/16512660/pga-tour-cancels-greenbrier-...
It does allow for the states resources to remain focused on recovery of the region rather than the security and needs of the event but its still a financial blow.
I was at the Greenbrier today cleaning up. Creeks exist now that did not exist before Thursday. Cars from the town of White Sulphur ended up floating onto the golf courses. Houses are hanging over edges into the creek from the ground decaying. I was surprised when I heard the news, until I saw the damage. It's an absolute mess!
White Sulfur was destroyed on the weekend and then got more rain last night. It is going to cost millions to restore.
Fortunately the worst of the rain pushed south of us. Everyone is back and working to clean up today. It's going to take awhile and some places may never be the same, but I'm proud of the way this county rallied and appreciate all the outside help from people from everywhere.