Rains Lead To Landslides Around Region
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The rain that started falling earlier this week kept coming through Wednesday morning, leading to more - and bigger - issues around the Wheeling area.
While Tuesday afternoon's rains led to standing water on some neighborhood streets, the precipitation that soaked the area overnight led to landslides that strangled some of the more important roadways in the area.
The biggest impact on Wednesday from the overnight rains was a massive landslide that covered most of W.Va. 2 right past Gumby's.
Wheeling Fire Department spokesman Philip Stahl said a call came in around 1:20 a.m. Wednesday for a tree laying against power lines. The situation only worsened after that.
"We think it just slowly moved its way over into the roadway," Stahl said.
By mid-Wednesday morning, only a sliver of W.Va. 2 remained clear, enough for utility trucks and emergency vehicles to squeeze through. The rest was buried under tons of dirt and downed trees. Some of those trees tangled into power lines, pulling utility poles down in the process.
Wheeling Fire Chief Jim Blazier said there was no estimate as of Wednesday morning as to when the road would get cleared. What he did know was that it would be a significant undertaking. Appalachian Power workers arrived at the scene Wednesday morning, an important first step in the process.
"I don't think the state road (crews) can start doing the clearing process until AEP gets the wires out of the way and the poles handled," Blazier said. "I think a lot of their crews are busy in the lower part of the state."
Crews from Appalachian Power, Ohio County Emergency Management and Wheeling Division of Operations have also been assisting in the cleanup of W.Va. 2 and landslides in other areas.
Blazier said it was good that the Wellsburg Bridge was now open, giving Warwood residents a shorter route to cross the Ohio River onto Ohio 7 to head south. In prior years, the crossover wouldn't come until Weirton.
Another notable landslide occurred at the Mount Zion Cemetery, which uprooted and moved headstones. The cleanup timeline for the Mount Zion mudslide is also unknown. City of Wheeling Operations Director Steve Johnston said city crews would begin to assist in the cleanup of the area once the storm has passed.
Johnston outlined the cleanup process for landslides involves cutting up trees that have fallen with chainsaws and then using loaders and dump trucks to clear the area of mud, tree pieces and other debris.
"We're trying to get mudslide areas cleared as quickly as we can, but there's still always the possibility that the slides will continue," noted Johnston on Wednesday morning. "Just because the rain may stop or slow down, that doesn't mean the mudslides will stop or slow down.
"We may have to go back and clean up some areas we've already cleaned before," Johnston continued. "We're trying to get everything cleaned up after the storm passes."
Ohio County first responders and Wheeling city crews were not only busy on Wednesday clearing landslides but also gearing up for significant clean-up efforts flooding on Thursday will bring.
While there was no major flooding in Ohio County as of Wednesday, Vargo explained they were keeping an eye on the Ohio River and creeks and streams in the area. Vargo added they "haven't taken their eyes off any body of water for the past two days."
"We're going to keep an eye on things heading forward," said Vargo. "As we always tell people, do not drive through running water across roadways. Our motto is 'turn around, don't drown,' because it takes only a small amount of moving water to take a car away."
Vargo said emergency crews are staying focused on Wheeling Island and South Wheeling before the Ohio River is predicted to crest at 41.7 feet at 8 p.m. on Thursday, according to the National Weather Service office in Pittsburgh
Vargo said this crest level, which is more than five feet above Wheeling flood levels, will result in many Wheeling Island residents having flooding in their basements. He added no resident should have to evacuate.
"With flooding at that level, the main concern should be the safety of citizens in the flood area and protecting their property," noted Vargo. "Areas of the Island will be impassable once we get to the point of flooding, so access to certain areas will be restricted."
Vargo explained restricting access to certain areas of the island will allow first responders to get the area "back to normal as quickly as possible" and allow for Wheeling Island residents to stay "as safe as possible."
Once the river begins to recede, Vargo explained all first responders will work with the city, the Wheeling Division of Operations and the Wheeling Fire Department to assist Wheeling Island and South Wheeling residents.
This assistance will include recovery, helping residents clean out and pump basements and getting both areas "back to normal as quickly as possible," said Vargo.
First responders may ask for assistance from the state depending on the extent of damage in the area.
Apart from assisting in landslide cleanups, the main focus for the Wheeling Division of Operations since Monday has been keeping city streets open. A new obstacle Johnston said city crews have had to tackle in this effort is trees falling across roads and on power lines.
Johnston said they have had a few trees fall along Rock Point Road in Wheeling and have responded to "some other neighborhood calls" to clean up fallen branches. The Wheeling Division of Operations has also been working with AEP to manage power outages in Ohio County due to trees falling into power lines.
Another aspect of city crew cleanup duties has been clearing storm drains and low-lying areas of any leaves and other debris to prevent water accumulation.
"Clearing areas of debris is an ongoing operation that happens wherever we have any rain at all," said Johnston. "We'll be clearing those anytime we have an extended period of rain."
Johnston noted that many residents in neighborhoods prone to flooding have been "keeping an eye on storm drains" or taking matters into their own hands and clearing drains and streets themselves.
"That's always a help," added Johnston. "Our street sweepers are also out there to clean up along the streets."
The Wheeling Division of Operations has also assisted other city departments in moving their equipment out of low-lying areas, including the Intermodal Center, WesBanco Arena and Heritage Port.
"Apart from cleanups and flood preparations, we're just carrying on with regular business," said Johnston. "With all of that, we're quite busy right now."
Johnston described feeling "a bit lucky" regarding the amount of rainfall and flooding in the area compared to the predicted forecast.
"What we have in front of us looks like we're gonna see some light at the end of the tunnel," described Johnston on Wednesday. "We had a lot of work we had to do today, which is still ongoing because of rivers rising and whatnot."
Though Johnston sees a light at the end of the tunnel regarding rainfall and predicted flooding, he emphasizes those in flood-prone areas, particularly Wheeling Island residents, need to remain vigilant.
Johnston emphasized that apart from never driving through a flooded area, one should also avoid walking through a flooded area. Another danger he mentioned was fallen power lines that may be underwater that one cannot see.
"We ask people to be careful in these situations," said Johnston. "It’s dangerous even if the water is only up to your ankles."