News
Road Closures and Power Outages Result From Heavy Rains
By: Susan Tebben
Posted on:
After a line of storms passed through the region, West Virginia has declared a state of emergency and thousands are without power in Ohio. Some parts of the region are also seeing road closures caused by the heavy rains that came Monday evening into Tuesday morning.
According to the Associated Press, West Virginia Governor Earl Ray Tomblin declared a state of emergency Monday for Braxton, Webster and Wood counties after severe flooding.
The state of emergency seeks to address the rockslides, mudslides and severe flooding that resulted from heavy rain Sunday night and Monday morning.
State agencies have workers in the three counties assessing damages, according to AP reports.
Roads in the Athens, Vinton and surrounding counties are closed due to flooding. Those roads include:
- State Route 550 between State Route 690 and Joy Road in Athens County
- State Route 329 between Guysville and County Road 48 (New England Road) in Athens County
- County Road 18 (Potter Road) in Athens County
- County Road 34 (Dutch Creek Road) in Athens County
- County Road 48 (New England Road) in Athens County
- State Route 328 between 93 and 56 in Vinton County
- State Route 349 between the Jackson County line and state route 160 in Vinton County
- State Route 327 in Wellston, between County Road 43 (Glen Nell Road) and County Road 30, and at the north Wellston corporation limit
- State Route 233 between Oak Hill and the Gallia County line in Jackson County
- State Route 279 between Oak Hill and the Gallia County line in Jackson County
- State Route 788 between U.S. Route 35 and State Route 93 in Jackson County
State road closure updates can be found at the Ohio Department of Transportation’s traffic website.
The state of emergency can trigger federal assistance if certain thresholds are met. It also doesn’t provide for direct individual assistance.
Customers in Jackson, Pike and Scioto counties are without electricity. According to AEP Ohio’s website, Scioto County has 1,725 people without power as of 10:15 a.m. Pike County has 972 customers without power, Jackson has 415 out of power and Lawrence County has 335 in the dark as of Tuesday morning. Thousands are also without power in the southwest part of Ohio according to Duke Energy’s website.
The National Weather Service’s Storm Prediction Center warned of widespread winds, hail and possible tornadoes possible through parts of the midwest and Ohio Valley throughout Monday night. More rainfall is predicted for Tuesday night.