Clendenin Story Archives - Page 2 of 3 - West Virginia Public Broadcasting

County Board Vows to Rebuild Clendenin Elementary School

Members of the Kanawha County Board of Education promised the community of Clendenin it would rebuild their destroyed elementary school within the community.

Clendenin Elementary sustained the most damage of any school in the county during June’s historic flooding when 97 percent of the structure was damaged.

The board held an emergency meeting at the Clendenin Volunteer Fire Depratment Wednesday evening where Superintendent Dr. Ron Duerring explained children would be bused to Bridge Elementary School in Elkview when classes begin on Monday. There, many teachers will double up in classrooms until portable ones can be delivered in late September or early October.

“Health, safety and education. That’s the three most important things we can do for your kids,” Duerring told parents and teachers at the meeting, but he added those three things cannot be provided in the current building.

Several community members expressed concern over the decision urging the board to move students back into their communities as soon as possible. Many questioned why the portable classrooms needed to be placed on the Bridge Elementary site and could not be located on the Clendenin school’s current property, but parents did not get a clear answer from Duerring.

Despite the repeated pledges from Kanawha County Board of Education members, Clendenin Mayor Gary Bledsoe–who calls the elementary school the heart of his community– still worries the county will rebuild elsewhere.

Bledsoe said Wednesday the school district will have to rely on grant money from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to pay for a new building, but he believes it should be rebuilt on the same property, just raised a few feet to make sure its out of the floodplain.

Commissioner: 97 Percent of Clendenin Elementary Damaged

Authorities say that almost all of Clendenin Elementary School has sustained flood damage.

Kanawha County Commissioner Dave Hardy tells local media about 97 percent of the school was damaged during last month’s floods.

Kanawha schools Superintendent Ron Deurring says school officials will first need to speak with Federal Emergency Management Agency officials before determining when or if the school will reopen.

Whenever a building is more than 50 percent damaged, it has to be brought into compliance with national flood insurance policy. Deurring says it will cost about $3.6 million to repair the building — a cost that doesn’t include bringing it up to current codes.

Clendenin students are planned to attend six to eight portable classrooms in front of Bridge Elementary when the school year starts Aug. 8.

Public Libraries Sustain Damage in Flooding

Not only were homes and businesses impacted by flood waters last month, but public libraries suffered as well.

Five feet of flood water destroyed the Rainelle Public library’s entire print and digital collections. According to a press release from the West Virginia Library Commission, the Clendenin Public Library was declared a catastrophe. Flood waters forced out windows and left 8 inches of mud throughout the building. All books were destroyed, and the structural integrity of the facility is in doubt.

It’s estimated that it could take several months to get the libraries back up and running. Clay County Public Library also suffered damage in the basement of the facility, ruining computers and the heating and cooling system.

Books-A-Million stores in the state are supporting flood relief efforts to rebuild the collections, A portion of sales on Saturday July 16^th will go to the state Library Commission. The commission is also looking for donations of money and man power to help clean up the libraries.

Mayor: 'Clendenin is Going to Survive'

Two weeks after historic flooding in the Kanawha County town of Clendenin destroyed or damaged homes, churches, and even town hall, the people who live there are still working to clear mud and debris from the homes and city streets.

There are two donation collection locations set up for the town of about 1,200, one across the street from the damaged post office that’s now closed. Workers are handing out mail from a temporary trailer parked next to a tent full of food and cleaning supplies.

Clendenin Mayor Gary Bledsoe speaks with Tom Kempton, a FEMA representative.

“The day after it happened, it looked worse than a war zone,” Clendenin Mayor Gary Bledsoe said Wednesday. “The streets were almost impassible, but now we’ve got the streets all open. They’re still a little dirty, but other than that, we’re getting the infrastructure put back together.”

Floodwater in Clendenin reached historic levels after the Elk River topped out at 33 feet, breaking a record set in 1888.

Bledsoe said his office in town hall took on 3 and a half feet of water and destroyed some city records.

Total damage estimates have yet to come in, but Bledsoe expects them to be more than the town can handle on its own. He’ll rely on state and federal aid to rebuild his community.

“This was a catastrophe, not just a devastation. It’s a catastrophe. I hope we never see anything like this again,” he said. “They say it’s a thousand year flood, let’s hope it is.”

A member of a cleaning crew sprays mud from the deck of a Clendenin gas station.

Almost every business in town– 99 percent in Bledsoe’s words– was destroyed in the flooding. The mayor doesn’t expect to see any income from business and occupation taxes for at least another 12 months- that’s 40 percent of the city budget gone.

Still, he said, “Clendenin is going to survive.”

One Week After Flood, Tap Water Restored in W.Va.

A week after deadly floods ravaged West Virginia, all residents in one of the hardest-hit towns have tap water again. They just can't drink it yet.In a…

A week after deadly floods ravaged West Virginia, all residents in one of the hardest-hit towns have tap water again. They just can’t drink it yet.

In a news release Friday, West Virginia American Water said it has restored tap water to all areas of Clendenin.

About 3,000 people around Elkview and Clendenin didn’t have tap water following the June 23 floods that killed 23 people statewide.

Although it has now been restored to all households in that region, residents are being advised to boil it before using it.

Other areas of the state also lost tap water, and at the peak of the floods, tens of thousands of homes and businesses were without power. Only a few hundred were still without power Friday.

Kanawha Co. Waiving Building Permit Fees for Areas Affected by Flood

Following flooding in West Virginia that killed 23 people and ravaged thousands of homes and businesses, Kanawha County is waiving building permit fees in the Elkview and Clendenin areas.

The Kanawha County Commission voted Wednesday to waive the fees to all residential and commercial areas where houses and other buildings were damaged or destroyed by last week’s storm.

Building permits are required for all new construction projects to meet federal guidelines as defined in the Kanawha County Floodplain Ordinance.

Commissioner Kent Carper says in a news release that the fee waiver “will help expedite the rebuilding process” for residents and businesses without forcing those in the area to incur any costs.

Those seeking a building permit are being asked to contact the Kanawha County Commission’s planning office at 304.357.0570.