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Crew Clearing Captina Creek Log Jams For Flood Prevention

Photo by Shelley Hanson George Bess of Barnesville uses a chain saw to cut a tree into pieces along Captina Creek in Powhatan Point on Thursday.

A grant-funded crew of men and women has been clearing old trees and debris from Captina Creek since last summer as a flood-prevention measure. They use a Gator utility vehicle, chain saws and muscle to complete the work.

Belmont County Commissioners Josh Meyer and J.P. Dutton learned about the effort from the crew’s flood coordinator, Ken Wilson of St. Clairsville, during a tour of a couple of job the sites along the creek on Thursday. Since last summer the group has been clearing targeted areas of the creek of log jams and debris left behind by past floods. These same pockets of debris, if left untreated, cause additional flooding onto nearby roadways and properties, officials said.

The $646,779 Disaster National Dislocated Worker grant came following the February 2018 flooding that occurred throughout the region. A federal disaster declaration led to the release of the funds for Belmont County and several other counties across the Buckeye State.

Mike Schlanz, workforce administrator for the Belmont County Department of Job and Family Services who also oversees OhioMeansJobs, said the grant stipulated the workers hired for the job had to have been out of work for 15 weeks or displaced due to layoffs or their company closing.

“We have a good crew who is helping the county and the citizens of Belmont County. We also appreciate the commissioners, who gave us approval to get the grant,” Schlanz said.

In addition to Wilson, the crew includes Tom Pritchett of Colerain; crew leader Bill Graham of Powhatan Point; Gus Harris of Martins Ferry; Chris Perko of Triadelphia; George Bess of Barnesville; crew leader Jim Long of Powhatan Point; Gator driver Melissa Mackey of Barton; Jeff Finicum of Bellaire; and Nicole Loughman of Bellaire.

Both Meyer and Dutton said the group is doing great, important and potentially life-saving work on the stream. Having a similar, permanent crew for the county is something the commissioners will consider, but it all depends on whether the money is available in the coffers, Dutton said.

“They are doing a tremendous job,” Meyer said.

The county must receive permission from each property owner before the work can begin on a certain piece of land. Most have given the OK to do so, but a few have said no.

Wilson estimated since last August that the crew has cleared 1,000 cords of wood from the creek. One cord is a section of logs 4 feet tall, 4 feet wide and 8 feet long. Since they are not permitted to use heavy machinery on the creek bed, they use a Gator utility vehicle to pull straps connected to the trees to drag them from the water. The trees are then cut up into pieces and, if wanted, given back to the nearby property owner for use as firewood. Sections of wood that cannot be used, such as roots, are burned on site.

“It’s all manual labor,” Wilson said.

The crew works in all types of weather, including rain and snow. The grant may be extended into December, but for now is set to run out in July. The grant also covered the workers’ training and gear.

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