On this West Virginia Week, residents celebrated the end of Ramadan and a solar eclipse, while state officials squabbled over state emergency funds related to last week’s storms.
On this West Virginia Week, West Virginia residents were united by Monday’s solar eclipse, spreading out across college campuses and community parks to observe the astronomical event.
We’ll dive into these topics, plus changes to a pair of West Virginia sawmills, how Muslim residents celebrated the end of Ramadan, and the much-anticipated return of the American chestnut to Appalachia.
Jack Walker is our host this week. Our theme music is by Matt Jackfert.
West Virginia Week is a web-only podcast that explores the week’s biggest news in the Mountain State. It’s produced with help from Bill Lynch, Briana Heaney, Chris Schulz, Curtis Tate, Emily Rice, Eric Douglas, Jack Walker, Liz McCormick and Randy Yohe.
On Thursday, Gov. Jim Justice expanded a state of emergency declaration to include seven additional West Virginia counties: Barbour, Brooke, Hancock, Marshall, Ohio, Wetzel and Wood counties.
Updated on Tuesday, April 9, 2024 at 12:15 p.m.
On Monday, Gov. Jim Justice expanded last week’s state of emergency declaration to include Pleasants County.
Justice cited “severe thunderstorms” that caused “flooding, downed trees, power outages and road blockages” for the local community last week in a Monday press release.
With the expanded declaration, a state of emergency is now in place for 15 counties across the state in response to the storms.
Original Story: Justice Expands Storm Emergency Declaration To 7 New Counties
Gov. Jim Justice expanded a Tuesday state of emergency declaration to include seven additional West Virginia counties on Thursday.
Under the amended declaration, Barbour, Brooke, Hancock, Marshall, Ohio, Wetzel and Wood counties are now under a state of emergency.
They join Fayette, Kanawha, Lincoln and Nicholas counties, which received the declaration earlier this week.
The emergency declaration follows intense storms that stretched across West Virginia, bringing power outages, structural damages and even an EF-2 tornado in Fayette County, with winds of 130 mph.
By expanding the emergency declaration, Justice opened new counties up to emergency response resources.
Meanwhile, a state of preparedness declaration that Justice issued on Tuesday remains in effect for all 55 counties in the state.
A step down from a state of emergency, this declaration still encourages residents to stay vigilant regarding public safety concerns.
For additional information on the storms, visit the National Weather Service website.
Residents seeking non-emergency assistance related to the storms can contact local dispatchers through the West Virginia Emergency Management Division (WVEMD). Visit the WVEMD website for more information.
Preliminary damage assessments indicate an EF-2 tornado, with wind speeds up to 130 mph, touched down in the Hico area during Tuesday’s severe weather.
The National Weather Service said a tornado touched down Tuesday in Fayette County.
Preliminary damage assessments indicate an EF-2 tornado, with wind speeds up to 130 mph, touched down in the Hico area during Tuesday’s severe weather.
John Peck, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Charleston, explained how the tornado’s strength is calculated.
“Structures, depending on how the structure is built, what the structure is made of, tree damage, things like that,” he said. “We generate an estimated wind speed based off the damage to those indicators.”
No fatalities have been reported statewide from Tuesday’s storms.
The deadliest tornado in state history occurred in Shinnston on June 23, 1944. It killed 103 people and clocked wind speeds of 206 mph. Today, it would be categorized as an EF-5, the strongest possible tornado.
As of Wednesday afternoon, more than 76,000 Appalachian Power customers were still waiting for their power to be restored.
Tens of thousands of Appalachian Power customers remain without electricity after Tuesday’s storm.
As of Wednesday afternoon, more than 76,000 Appalachian Power customers were still waiting for their power to be restored.
An update from the company on Wednesday morning indicated most customers in four counties – Boone, Logan, Mingo and Raleigh – could expect to have their power back by 11 p.m. Wednesday.
It also said most customers in Cabell, Clay, Fayette, Greenbrier, Jackson, Kanawha, Lincoln, Mason, Nicholas, Putnam, Roane and Wayne counties could expect restoration by 11 p.m. Thursday.
More than 2,200 workers are part of that effort, the utility said, including 1,300 line workers from several surrounding states.
They’re dealing with downed trees, broken or damaged poles and transformers, and wires on the ground.
Customers can check their outage status, view an outage map, report an outage or sign up for outage alerts at AppalachianPower.com.
Appalachian Power is an underwriter of West Virginia Public Broadcasting.
A powerful line of storms rolled across West Virginia on Tuesday, knocking down trees and powerlines. The storms brought power outages for more than 100,000 residents across the state.
This is a developing story and may be updated.
Updated on Tuesday, April 2, 2024 at 3:20 p.m.
Gov. Justice has declared a State of Emergency for Fayette, Kanawha, Lincoln and Nicholas counties Tuesday due to severe thunderstorms with high winds, which caused flooding, downed trees, power outages, and road blockages.
The declaration is a proactive measure ensuring the allocation of necessary resources and expedition of emergency response efforts. The State of Emergency allows State and Local agencies to take swift and decisive actions to mitigate the impact of the storms and protect the lives and property of West Virginians.
Original Story: Sweeping Storms Spur Tornado Watch, Power Outages
A powerful line of storms rolled across West Virginia on Tuesday, knocking down trees and powerlines.
According to the National Weather Service, several rounds of thunderstorms are expected to continue into the night.
The storms could also bring “damaging winds, large hail, flash flooding and tornadoes,” the National Weather Service reported.
Storms will hit central West Virginia between 4 and 9 p.m. and move east.
In response to the storms, Marshall University closed its campuses for the remainder of the day Tuesday afternoon.
In West Virginia, storms knocked down trees and powerlines throughout Tuesday, bringing tornado and thunderstorm advisories to counties across the state.
Graphic Credit: National Weather Service
Emergency alerts and sirens sounded across Kanawha County Tuesday morning, as thirteen counties in southwestern West Virginia were placed under a tornado watch.
The Kanawha County Commission issued a state of emergency over the storms Tuesday afternoon. In a press release, the commission said 911 dispatchers had received more than 500 calls regarding the tornado warning that morning.
“Metro received calls regarding structure collapses, entrapments, vehicle wrecks, fires, fallen trees, and many medical calls,” the press release read. “There [have] been reported touch downs of tornadoes in the western portion of the county, but no confirmation at this time.”
As of 12:30 p.m., Appalachian Power reported 118,000 power outages, 53,000 of them in Kanawha County alone.
The commission urged Gov. Jim Justice to issue Kanawha County a state of emergency over the weather.
For additional updates on the storms, visit the National Weather Service website.
The West Virginia Air National Guard’s 130th Airlift Wing has sent a transport plane and crew from Charleston to support relief efforts in storm-damaged Puerto Rico.
According to the Air National Guard, the C-130 Hercules plane is transporting equipment from New York to Georgia before departing for the Caribbean island on Thursday.
Col. Randy Huffman, vice wing commander of the 130th Airlift Wing, says they’re helping in the efforts for American citizens in desperate need.
Additionally, the 167th Airlift Wing in Martinsburg is also transporting supplies and has airmen in Puerto Rico and Georgia helping with airfield operations.
The U.S. territory’s governor said Tuesday the official death toll from Hurricane Maria increased to 34.
Gov. Ricardo Rossello also said he believes the hurricane that struck on Sept. 20 with winds over 150 mph caused $90 billion in damage across the island.
