Devastating flash floods claim five lives in West Virginia
Devastating flash flooding in West Virginia has left at least five dead as rescue teams continue to search for survivors amid ruinous destruction. Around 2.5 to 4 inches of rain fell in half an hour on Saturday night in Wheeling, leading to flash floods that killed at least five people while emergency crews continue to search for three people reported missing.
Of the victims, who have yet to be identified, officials said one was a three-year-old, The New York Times reported. 'We almost immediately started getting 911 calls for rescue of people being trapped,' Lou Vargo, Ohio County's emergency management director, said at a news conference Sunday. 'During this time, we had major infrastructure damage to roads, bridges, and highways where we couldn't respond to a lot of incidents. So we were delayed in getting there because there was just so much damage.'
Vargo added: 'It happened so quickly and so fast... I've been doing this for 35 years. I've seen major floods here in the city and the county. I've never seen anything like this.' Vehicles were swept into swollen creeks, authorities said, while some people sought safety in trees and a mobile home caught fire. Fairmont saw severe flooding on Sunday afternoon, including the destruction of an apartment building that partially collapsed causing the evacuation of residents, CBS News reported. One resident of the building, who's pet dog was killed in the destruction, said in a GoFundMe : 'In a matter of hours, [my mom] lost her pet, Darla, clothes, furniture, personal belongings, and even her vehicle. The place she called home is now unrecognizable.'
Footage showed the destruction to the building, as rubble could be seen strewn across the ground and the interior exposed by the damage. It remains unclear how many were impacted by the destruction. Similarly, swift flash flooding arrived in Marion County, south of Wheeling and Ohio County, early Sunday afternoon, caused extensive damage to bridges, roads and some homes, the county's Department of Homeland Security & Emergency Management said in a Facebook post. At least 165 calls to emergency services have been made for aid since the storms began.
Gov. Patrick Morrisey declared a state of emergency in Marion County Sunday evening. Jim Blazier, the fire chief in Wheeling in the state's northern panhandle, said crews performed rescue operations into Sunday's early morning hours. 'We're searching the banks, we're searching submerged vehicles, any debris we find along the trail and so forth,' Blazier said. 'We're using drones, search dogs and swift water personnel, and we have teams organized that are searching sectors that we're trying to recover anybody that's missing.'
Around 2,500 power outages were reported in the county Sunday, Morrisey confirmed in a news release Sunday evening. He has declared a state of emergency in Ohio County and mobilized the National Guard to support emergency operations. 'In many respects, this is kind of a unicorn event, because a lot of the rain had very narrow areas and there were roughly 3 to 4 inches of water that fell in the area in less than an hour,' Morrisey said at a press conference earlier Sunday. 'That's very, very difficult to deal with.'
He added, 'Your friends, your neighbors, your first responders and people in the community, they're out working very hard to find people. That's our No. 1 task right now, trying to identify anyone who may still be out there.' 'Please - stay off the roads,' Morrisey warned residents. 'Do not underestimate the strength and speed of these floods. Pray for our friends and neighbors during this challenging time for our state.'
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