Heavy rains Saturday swept through Virginia, causing creeks and rivers to swell. A spokesperson with Virginia Department of Emergency Management said there have been over 100 rescues in Virginia.
Most have been in Richlands, in Tazewell County, where police chief Ron Holt said 60 people were evacuated near the Clinch River. The area is in State Senator Travis Hackworth’s district.
“It’s devastating,” Hackworth said. “There’s a lot of businesses, homes. It will take us days to unravel just how bad the devastation is.”
A shelter has opened at the Fuller Peery Building at the Tazewell County Fairgrounds, and Hackworth said about 25 people were sheltering there as of Sunday morning.
Flooding also swept through Buchanan County. 19-year-old Kylie Hensley recalled watching a family yelling for help from their front door in Hurley on Saturday evening.
“One of our neighbors ended up having a John boat that we could get to them with,” Hensley said. “And we used a Kayak paddle. They had pets and cats and dogs. We was able to save them too.”
In a video Hensley recorded, the sound of rushing floodwaters can be heard as her neighbor paddled to rescue the family. Inside the house, there was a half foot of water.
“They let us know that whenever they was walking through the house it was kind of electrocuting them and shocking them in each room,” Hensley said.
The rescued family is now sheltering at a neighbor’s home. Buchanan County has opened several shelters for evacuated residents.
Swiftwater rescue teams from Virginia Beach and Bristol have been helping with rescues in both Buchanan and Tazewell Counties.
“It’s gonna take a long time to get it back to normal,” Hensley said. “Clean up is gonna be a lot.”
Hensley said this is the worst flood she’s seen in Buchanan County in her lifetime, and some people are comparing it to the devastating flood of 1977.
High winds Sunday made restoring power to residents challenging. Hackworth said emergency crews are preparing for a winter storm this week.
“We’re just monitoring this next storm that’s coming. You know, it’s gonna get cold,” Hackworth said. “We’re trying to get power restored as quickly as possible.”
