At least five people have died in West Virginia, where flash flooding hit Wheeling and nearby Triadelphia and Valley Grove areas over the weekend. At least 4 people were still missing Sunday according to emergency management officials with Wheeling and Ohio counties. Search teams were expected to resume their search on Monday morning.
Between 2 to 4 inches of rain fell within a matter of hours late Saturday, which quickly overwhelmed and flooded the nearby Appalachian creeks and waterways. Wheeling Creek rose from 3 feet at 8:45 pm to roughly 10 feet at 10:15, a 7-foot jump in an hour and a half. Meteorologist Sara Tonks says, “The storm was part of a stalled frontal system that has been bringing heavy rain to the region for several days.”
Emergency management director Lou Vargo at the Wheeling Fire Department confirmed that the flooding has washed out roadways and destroyed homes. “I’ve been doing this for 35 years and this is the worst I’ve seen,” he said. Vargo asked nearby residents to stay home and off the road as heavy equipment and emergency vehicles continued to respond to the situation.
Governor Patrick Morrisey declared a state of emergency in Marion and Ohio counties.
Footage from the scene shows vehicles wrecked and submerged in Big Wheeling Creek and roadways under water in the city of Wheeling.
In the town of Fairmont in Marion County, an apartment building partially collapsed Sunday afternoon following the heavy rainfall and flooding. Water poured out of the building over a mountain of debris that shut down Locust Avenue. According to local reports no injuries were reported and residents of the building were being provided emergency shelter.
About 2,5000 power outages were reported Sunday in that county alone, according to the Governor’s office.
A flood watch remains in effect for the region, with locally heavy rainfall expected to occur Monday and Tuesday.