Nearly three weeks after floodwaters engulfed southern West Virginia, Welch, in McDowell County, remains caked in mud. Towns across the coalfields are still digging out, one wheelbarrow of debris at a time.
The initial shock has given way to determination. Residents are proud of the community’s display of resilience. What they say is a lack of outside assistance has led neighbors and volunteers to step in.
‘This too shall pass’
On Tuesday in Welch, watered-logged furniture and garbage were stacked on either side of Lake Drive.
Residents Kathy Watson and her husband Jack continued to clean up, shoveling wheelbarrows full of mud out of their home. Kathy Watson pointed to the houses around her, noting that she was surrounded by her extended family working on their respective homes, including children and grandchildren.
She recalled all of them leaving together, waiting until about 10 p.m. Feb. 15 to retreat from floodwaters. Jack Watson had to coax her along while they waded in water up to her chest.
“The water was so cold, and I don’t swim,†she said.
The flood destroyed their belongings and many appliances in their house.
The Watsons feel blessed with all the help they received in the aftermath. Former coworkers, family members, the National Guard, and groups volunteering from other states pitched in to help rip up carpet, move mud and dry out their belongings.
“You think the world is so bad and people are so evil until something like this happens, and you’re swarmed by angels who come into your house and start doing,†Kathy said.
However, without a landline or Wi-Fi, the couple said they feel isolated. Plus, applying for assistance through FEMA became a two-day ordeal because of poor cell phone reception.
Kathy, who has lived in the same house for 45 years, expressed through tears how overwhelming it is, at 71 years old, to “get back up and start all over.â€
“But this too shall pass,†she said.
Response to an ‘extreme event’
Rain poured across southern West Virginia on Feb. 15. By that evening, Gov. Patrick Morrisey declared a State of Emergency in Cabell, Greenbrier, Kanawha, Logan, Mercer, McDowell, Mingo, Raleigh, Summers and Wyoming counties. Boone, Lincoln and Wayne counties were added to the declaration the morning of Feb. 16. A State of Preparedness was in effect in all 55 counties.
On that day, Morrisey also deployed the National Guard, including All-Hazard Swift Water teams to McDowell County, and set up a joint operations center to allow efficient coordination in the southern coalfields.
The National Guard, Department of Natural Resources, and local emergency personnel completed at least 135 swift water rescues, and three people died as a result of the flood. There were 64,000 households initially without power, though power was restored to all of them, save for 10 customers in Cabell, McDowell and Mingo counties, Morrisey reported on Feb. 20.
According to Ray Young, lead forecaster at the National Weather Service in Charleston, this is the worst flood Welch has ever seen, similar to the 2022 record crest but slightly higher at 22.1 feet. At 48.4 feet, Williamson made the second-highest flood stage in the town’s history, bested only by the flood of 1977.
“Upper portions of the river were rising at four feet an hour — which is flash flood territory — which rivers typically don’t do,†explained Young. “It was a pretty extreme event.â€
In addition to news conferences and social media updates, Morrisey made two trips to southern West Virginia, visiting multiple areas along his routes, including Williamson, Welch, Raysal and Oceana.
That same day, he announced he was applying for major disaster declaration. Now, residents in four counties — McDowell, Mercer, Mingo and Wyoming counties — can receive Individual Assistance through a program that provides funds to people experiencing significant damage to homes or property.
Other counties in the request — Boone, Cabell, Greenbrier, Kanawha, Lincoln, Logan, Monroe, Raleigh, Summers and Wayne — still remain under consideration by FEMA, according to a news release from Morrisey’s office.
‘The heel of the state’
Sandi Blankenship of God’s Grace Ministries in Welch said a 45-minute trip home from a baby shower on Feb. 15 became a terrifying and harrowing hours-long journey. She recalled being stranded in a car for hours, surrounded by “rumbling,†fast-moving water. She watched as others searched around the Tug River for loved ones, vehicles were flipped and swept away, and people nearly drowned.
“I’ve never seen the water rage like that here,†she said.
She made it to her daughter’s home at Slick Curve Lane in Thorpe at 1 a.m. She rescued pets and grabbed irreplaceable belongings, and got everyone out of her house on Stewart Street, which had lost power. They stayed the night at Living Waters Resource Center in Welch.
Her daughter and her family lived there for 13 days. Blankenship said her grandchildren had “lost everything.â€
Seeing the devastation fueled Blankenship’s efforts to get to work immediately. So that Monday, she and other volunteers were cooking free meals with Latin Appalachian, a restaurant across the street from God’s Ministry, 21 McDowell St., as well as mucking out her ministry food pantry to disburse supplies to those who needed it.
Blankenship said Morrisey’s two visits and the individual assistance offered to residents affected by the flood isn’t enough. She specifically noted that FEMA’s presence has been underwhelming thus far and that the community feels “forgotten†by the state government and media. She would like to see Morrisey and the media focusing on the Mountain State’s southern counties.
“I don’t like it at all,†she said. “[The media] is so worried about what’s going on in the White House, they’ve left people to starve to death and die down here. We’ve lost people here. It didn’t have to be that way.â€
Blankenship said the local government, National Guard, and community support have compensated for the lack of care she feels from the federal and state governments, with people and businesses providing donations, propane heaters, and manpower working to reach people in isolated hollows with supplies.
“We’re the heel of the state. They don’t care what happens to us,†she said. But, “the thing about Appalachian people [is], we’re survivors.â€
Back to school
While many in McDowell County are still rebuilding their lives, students will return to school Monday. Staff at Welch Elementary School said that McDowell County Schools’ buildings did not suffer major damage. The school district has also located children who may have been displaced and has assisted them in getting to school.
This may prove difficult for students who live in hollows farther away from Welch. Blankenship reported having to position extension ladders across waterways to deliver supplies to some households.
The Rev. Brad Davis, a United Methodist Church pastor in McDowell County, said there are places in the county still struggling with cleanup and obtaining supplies, even with a strong effort from local government officials, residents and first responders.
“The outlying communities aren’t getting the supplies they need,†he said. “It seems like the concentration is on Welch and everyone else is sort of fighting for scraps,†he said in a text message, in part. “There’s been no wide-scale debris pickup outside of Welch.â€
Kimberly Pendry, a teacher at Welch Elementary, said she and her colleagues have tried to keep in contact with their students’ families. Residents have even reported that teachers have worked through mud to reach their students since the floodwaters receded with arms full of provisions.
Welch Elementary Principal Sarah Diaz expressed concern about students who may have lost their homes and confirmed that she does have some students who qualify as displaced, meaning they are not currently staying in their home. However, there have been no final numbers released to know how many have lost their homes permanently or temporarily.
Pendry and Diaz said getting students back to school will provide them with the necessary structure to better bounce back from this natural disaster. This has been detailed in a number of studies and is included in FEMA’s recommendations to help children cope with natural disasters.
“The research says that the longer kids are out, especially due to a crisis, the more long-term effects there are,†Diaz said.
According to Pendry, this is especially true for McDowell County, where a significant number of students live in poverty.
“Kids in poverty need that structure, those routines. That’s what we’ve been working on [at the school] this week,†Pendry said. “We also have a Communities in Schools coordinator who can get kids additional supplies if they need it.â€
Diaz said she wants people to recognize the strength and resilience of McDowell County, as well as the students who are returning to school so soon after floodwaters rushed through their community.
“We’re a tough group, and I don’t want anyone to feel sorry for our kids. I want them to know that [the kids] can rise up out of this and be bigger and better and make something of themselves.â€
