West Virginia Deploys 100 Guard Troops After 7 Inches of Rain Flood 55 Counties
Updated
Updated · Newsday · Jul 22
West Virginia Deploys 100 Guard Troops After 7 Inches of Rain Flood 55 Counties
3 articles · Updated · Newsday · Jul 22
Summary
100 National Guard members were sent to northern West Virginia after flash floods swamped homes and businesses, while Gov. Patrick Morrisey declared an emergency across all 55 counties and said 200 more troops were due by late Wednesday morning.
Up to 7 inches of rain fell on already saturated ground, triggering life-threatening flooding, washing out bridges and forcing dozens of water rescues as some crews still could not reach cut-off areas.
Lewis and Upshur counties were hit especially hard, with flooded hotels, submerged vehicles at a Weston Walmart and closures on Interstate 79, U.S. Route 48 and numerous secondary roads.
No deaths were immediately reported, though a USGS gauge showed Sand Run near Buckhannon rose to a record level above the 1985 flood mark; the storms also spawned tornado reports from Ohio to the New York City suburbs.