CHARLESTON, W.Va. –
The West Virginia National Guard (WVNG) has completed flood response and recovery operations in Randolph County, West Virginia, for a flooding event that occurred June 30, 2019.
All Soldiers working on state active duty have been recalled.
During the initial phase of response, the WVNG had a daily total of between eight to 20 Soldiers on duty in Randolph County. Throughout the duration of the response, Soldiers provided daily health and welfare checks, delivered two water buffalos to the area, distributed 155 cases of water, and delivered 21 boxes of food to residents, while also assisting local emergency management officials with logistical efforts. Loader dump teams removed and hauled more than 60 loads of debris and runoff removal and hauled more than 130 tons of stone and rock from the affected areas. Soldiers also performed five days of 24-hour operational support and spillway work on the Horace Camp pond dam to remove water and assist engineers from the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection (WVDEP) to stabilize the earthen dam.
"I am extremely proud of the work done by our West Virginia National Guard Soldiers who were on the ground when the citizens of West Virginia needed them most," said Maj. Gen. James Hoyer, Adjutant General of the West Virginia National Guard. "The efforts of these men and women helped to stabilize communities in need, get them back on their feet, and enable them to move forward towards recovery."
The West Virginia Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management (WVDHSEM) continues its support to the affected areas in both Randolph County and five other counties in Eastern West Virginia who were impacted by the flood event. Since the early hours of July 1, WVDHSEM staff have provided resource request fulfillment and remain in contact with local emergency managers to continuously monitor the progress of recovery.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Region III Joint Public Assistance (PA) Preliminary Damage Assessments (PDA) teams are on the ground in the impacted areas now collecting data to be used for a potential Federal Disaster Declaration and other local and state recovery efforts.
“The role that WVDHSEM, the WVNG and the Division of Highways have played has been critical in meeting the immediate needs of citizens and officials in the impacted counties,” stated Mike Todorovich, Director of WVDHSEM. “Without the rapid-response capabilities of all our state agencies, local officials and responders would have been overwhelmed. WVDHSEM will continue to be engaged in the affected areas to provide assistance through the long-term recovery process.”
West Virginia National Guard operations personnel will continue to work closely with WVDHSEM and other state agencies and federal partners as needed to provide after action reporting and data.
Now that initial emergency response operations are complete, state agencies will transition fully into long-term recovery operations.