By: Jeff Jenkins | Posted: Jan. 19, 2018 at 4:30 p.m. | Source: WV MetroNews
PROCIOUS, W.Va. — One of the latest signs of recovery from the June 2016 flood that devastated parts of central and southeastern West Virginia can be seen in Clay County.
On Friday afternoon, a new bridge was dedicated in Procious to open up access for one family to their home. It was made possible through the efforts of the West Virginia Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (West Virginia VOAD).
“We’ve now built eight since the 2016 flooding and here in two weeks we are going to start up the next phase of bridges when we’ve got 12 engineered and ready to go to be built in the next few months,” West Virginia VOAD Executive Director Jenny Gannaway said Friday.
VOAD began its bridge program after 2015 flooding in parts of Lincoln, Boone, Logan and Mingo counties. It built 40 private bridges in connection with that disaster. Gannaway said they still have 133 private bridges either to rebuild or repair from the 2016 flood.
The projects are paid for through a variety of funds, much of it private dollars. The Clay County family that got a bridge Friday had collected money for the rebuild but couldn’t get a contractor and that’s when VOAD stepped in. Gannaway said the family has been getting to and from their home through the creek.
“Any time it rained and the creek got up–you know just six inches of water can wash a car away–they were then stuck on one side of the creek or the other,” Gannaway said.
Her organization was one of several involved in the bridge project. Mennonite Disaster Services built the bridge with funding from the United Way of Central West Virginia and Stump Chapel in Tesla.
Gannaway said there’s still much to do in recovery work from the June 2016 flood. She said events like Friday keep her and others going.
“Days like today when you can go up and walk on the bridge and you have the family say ‘Thank you’ and ‘I appreciate your help’ and you see the tears in their eyes of knowing they could not do that without the work we are doing–that keeps you going,” Gannaway said.
Jeff Jenkins is an award-winning native of Pratt, W.Va., took over as head of the news division of MetroNews in August 2000. Jeff can be reached at jjenkins@wvradio.com. Follow Jeff on Twitter @JeffJenkinsMN.
