Short Creek in Ohio County Has Long Road to Recovery
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WHEELING -- As Ohio County and West Virginia Division of Highways officials continued to assess creek flood damage and make repairs to roads and waterlines in the Short Creek and GC&P Road areas of Ohio County on Wednesday, Short Creek United Methodist Church volunteers stepped up to help.
The volunteers are collecting bottled water and cleaning supplies and providing free lunches for residents affected by the flooding.
On Wednesday, DOH crews removed mud and debris from a heavily damaged Boone Hedges Road that runs between GC&P and North Fork roads in that area of the county. At the same time, several volunteers stood in front of the nearby Methodist church handing out supplies to those in need after flooding devastated homes and roads.
Area resident Lacey Gonzalez said church volunteers went into action last Friday, collecting supplies and helping to feed families who are struggling to recover.
"It started with individual donations … people on Facebook saying, 'We need help out here, and so we just started collecting (supplies),'" Gonzalez said.
She said several other churches, including the Appalachian Outreach organization all pitched in to help out once the flood relief effort started at the church. She said they have been offering free daily lunches at the church hall and delivering meals to families who were unable to drive to the church. The church will host a "Survive the Flood Spaghetti Dinner" at 6 p.m. today at the church for everyone in the community who was affected by the flooding and all the volunteers who helped with relief efforts.
"There's definitely a lot of people affected. We just got water back yesterday," Gonzalez said. "We have to help each other out," she added.
Wheeling-Ohio County Emergency Management Director Lou Vargo said he is in talks with emergency officials in Charleston and the Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management Agency as his office continues to access the damage in that area of the county. Vargo said about 100 residents along Short Creek, North Fork and GC&P roads who were left without water for several days after a waterline in that area was damaged from the flash flooding, have been restored to full service as of Tuesday evening. He said repairs took longer than normal because crews needed the water to recede before they could begin the repairs. Vargo said only one resident, who resides in a higher elevation of that area, advised his office of low water pressure -- something the county's public service district continues to address.
"They put in additional valves in and isolated the leak, and then they put a jumper line in there," Vargo said. "We have a team coming in from the state to do damage assessment … and we still have people out there helping the residents clean," he added.
In addition, Vargo said he is working with emergency officials to have an extremely large tree removed from a section of Shortcreek, after it fell into the stream following last week's flooding. He said removing the tree is high on his priority list as it could cause additional problems in the event of any future flooding.
While West Virginia Division of Highways District 6 Engineer Gus Suwaid did not return calls to his office Wednesday, he said earlier this week the state Department of Transportation continues making efforts to address the many road problems in that area as there were a number of road closures following the flooding.
"Obviously we have our hands full. I think we have a total of five roads we had to shut down due to wash outs and minor slips. … The flooding is one of those public enemies that you have to deal with and this time of the year makes it more challenging," Suwaid commented.
The National Weather Service in Pittsburgh is predicting rain today through the weekend. As of Wednesday, the Ohio River is predicted to crest at 34.6 feet at about 7 p.m. Saturday. However, river crest predictions change as the amount of rainfall goes up or down. Residents along creeks and the rivers are urged to pay attention to rising water and report conditions to their local authorities.