By james art 
By Stephen Allen Adams
Staff
Charleston – Western Virginia Emergency Response Officers are already on the fourth day of the flood response over the weekend in numerous cities in southern Western Virginia, and by the time it is progressing the opening road sails and the re -connection of power, the mortal number increased to two, with Possibly unrelated death as a firefighter and a missing man.
Governor Patrick Morris and General -Adjutant Jim Sürard informed the press of the flood response on Tuesday morning at the governor’s receptionist in the state capitol building.
Western Virginia is widespread in the southern part of the state after heavy storms, which began on February 15. The flood led to significant damage from infrastructure, loss of power, displacement of residents and tragic loss of life.
Morrisi said there are two additional deaths related to the flood, as well as the death of a firefighter whose identity is not released because the next KIN is still associated. Morrisi announced the first death related to the flood on Monday. Also, another person remains disappeared.
“We now know that there are up to two people who have been reported dead by McDowell County,” Morrisi said. “These are Donald and Debbie Griffin of Welch. We also know that there is another individual who is still missing. They are now missing a few days, so obviously there is an effort with dogs to try to find this individual. We also know that a firefighter died in McDowell last night. “
Morrisi announced on Monday that he asked for an emergency disaster declaration from President Donald Trump to unlock federal resources. This came after Morrisi and the government officials went through the affected cities of Western Virginia and witnessed the damage first -hand.
“It became clear to me that federal help is needed in southern Western Virginia because we have to do everything we can to return the communities of the legs and be strong,” Morrisi said. “That is why yesterday I asked for an emergency disaster from President Trump, which can unlock some of the federal resources and energy to help our efforts to recover.”
The Republican Delegation of the West Virginia Congress – USA Shelley Moore Capito and Jim justice, and US reports Carol Miller and Riley Moore – wrote a letter on Monday in support of the governor’s request. The request is for 13 counties in the central and southern Western Virginia, affected by “heavy rains, winds with straight line, floods, landslides and muddy plates”.
“We applaud the tireless dedication to our state and local first reacting, as well as the priceless contributions of our neighbors and volunteers,” writes Trump’s delegation. “However, the search for help remains significant and we urge you to do everything in your power to ensure that our communities have the federal support they need to restore and restore.”
High water rescuers are crucial, with approximately 60-65 water rescue over the weekend. Eleven of them were conducted by officers with the division of natural resources.
Power restoration is a major priority with significant progress. According to Morrisi 55,909, Western Virginians have restored their power in the last few days by Tuesday morning, with only 8,119 homes being left without power.
Morrisi marked major road closure in several districts, pointing to the washed roads and bridges as examples of public infrastructure damage in southern cities. The highway department works to clear road lanes and ditches of debris.
The immediate focus is on the rescue efforts, the restoration of power, the provision of major resources to the affected communities and an assessment of the full amount of damage. Both Morrisi and Syard praised the local first reacting, volunteers, members of the National Guard and others providing support for cleaning and recovery efforts.
“I want to start by thank you all for the incredible work they do,” Morrisi said. “Today, I start with people on the spot, people who just work: the first answers, the local law enforcement agencies or the volunteers who do everything that can be presented to help their fellow citizens in need.”
“I would just like to thank the members of the National Guard, who are in their communities,” Syard said. “We met many of them yesterday. They were not in this uniform. They may have been in a state police uniform or work at a food bank. This is a great thing about the National Guard. They are in our communities and serve their fellow citizens in many different ways, and that local knowledge was very useful to me yesterday while we were in place. “
Stephen Allen Adams can be found at sadams@newsandsentinel.com