High water: life lessons from the VFD

Don't even think about it

The endless rain this week has reminded me of  some life lessons I learned in my short and inglorious career on my hometown volunteer fire department, which was often kind of a flood department. Here goes:

*DO NOT try to drive through water;

*Candles are evil;

*4 wheelers want to kill you; and

*Try before you pry.

Most of these should be pretty obvious, but the last one may require some unpacking. A lot of the gear of firefighting is about forcing entry into a burning building or a wrecked vehicle--and it can be really cool to use. But sometimes you can just open the door...

You get what you pay for

West Virginia is dry as a bone right now, although it may rain tomorrow inshallah. It's so dry that dust springs up when our dogs walk across the field. The creek is dry except for a few holdout holes for the first time since 2012. Oh yeah, and fire season is  approaching.

Fall brush fires around here are not as catastrophic (for now) as those in California and other places, but they can be pretty scary. I remember one year when you could see long lines of fire snaking along the mountains of Logan County. In fact, the one on-duty injury I sustained in my short, happy and inglorious career as a volunteer fire fighter happened during a brush fire.

(Actually, it was a burn from a flare, but the flare started it.)

Anyhow, fire season and managing woodlands has gotten a bit harder lately, since the state had to lay off 37 foresters due to legislative inaction. Come to think of it, those guys might have been useful in reducing the impact of severe flooding in the future by monitoring the damage done by corporate clear cutters.

Holy hashtag failed state, Batman!

Meanwhile, the state's opioid crisis keeps rippling out. This WV Public Broadcasting story explores how it's impacting the foster care system in the state.

And, while we're at it, here's an op-ed by my friend the Rev. Matthew J. Watts about what might happen politically if all of the state's convicted felons voted. They can in WV, but many don't vote or even realize that it's legal here.

Finally, a little over a year ago I was part of an AFSC delegation to Palestine. I have many grim and sad memories of the trip. However, I have nothing but fondness when I think back on hanging with comrades and drinking Taybeh, a primo Palestinian beer.

Who'll stop the rain?

Even as much of WV tries to muck its way out of the 2016 flood, more rain is hitting the Mountain State. In some areas already hit, flash flood watches have turned to warnings. On the brighter side, the estimated death toll is down to 23 from yesterday's estimate of 25.

Here's some good coverage from the Charleston Gazette-Mail.

For those who want to contribute to flood relief, here are two credible agencies (admittedly out of many others): Catholic Charities and WV VOAD (Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster).

People who want to get directly involved have been encouraged to register with Volunteer WV rather than self-deploy, although that hasn't stopped plenty of people and groups.

As is almost always the case, the disaster has also brought out the best in many people. I'm reminded of the book  A Paradise Built in Hell: The Extraordinary Communities that Arise in Disasters by Rebecca Solnit (see earlier Goat Rope post here). Here's one story about how hundreds of people stranded at a shopping plaza in Elkview got treated to an epic cookout by Kroger's employees.

I guess it was another case of making lemon-aid. Or cheeseburgers.

Here's hoping WV gets through the night with minimal additional damage.

WV flood update

I keep hearing from folks around the country asking about the situation here. This is the latest from the WV Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management:

Latest Saturday afternoon flood updates: 

- Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin today announced his request for a Federal Disaster Declaration has been granted by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to assist West Virginians after extreme flooding on Thursday and Friday.

The declaration will provide individual assistance, which includes emergency medical support, housing and addresses a number of immediate needs, to residents in Kanawha, Greenbrier and Nicholas counties.

-The fatality count from the flooding has risen with the recovery of a body today found in Greenbrier County. This brings the fatality count from 23 (twenty-three) to 24 (twenty-four).
-16 found in Greenbrier County
-6 in Kanawha County
-1 in Ohio County
-1 in Jackson County
. -There are three Red Cross shelters and four supported shelters currently open. Meals, cleaning supplies, comfort kits, water and other supplies are being distributed. Health services and mental health services are also being provided. Anyone who needs assistance or find an open shelter can call 1-800-RED-CROSS or www.redcross.org.

-WV VOAD damage assessment teams will begin tomorrow and cleanup teams will begin on Monday.
-WV VOAD is sending cleanup kits, water and cleaning supplies to county emergency managers for them to distribute to their community.
-WV VOAD is setting up volunteer centers in Greenbrier, Nicholas, Fayette, Kanawha and Webster counties.
-The Council of Churches, Salvation Army and Red Cross are sending pastoral teams to affected counties.
-The Southern Baptist organization has set up a feeding station in Greenbrier and will be going tomorrow to Nicholas and Kanawha.
-West Virginia State Parks are offering discounted room rates to those affected and displaced by recent flooding. If you or someone you know is in need of lodging, please call your local park. To view a full park directory, visit: bit.ly/28VsKEY.

You can get the latest info on Twitter at  https://twitter.com/WVDHSEM or check out the Facebook page.

Dumb luck

This morning I got an email from a friend up north asking about the storms that devastated West Virginia yesterday. I was able to report that we got really lucky at Goat Rope Farm. We've seen a lot more damage where I live from a lot less rain, but this time around there were enough breaks between storms to let the water go down.

Many others weren't so lucky. Some parts of the state got nine inches of rain in a short time, which is way more than what is needed to kill people, flood out hollers wash out roads and bridges and destroy homes. The death toll from the storm is now 15 and it may go up and it looks like the worst of the damage was done to Richwood in Nicholas County.

You can check out some images of the storm here.

Let's just face it: the skies are getting scarier. And who knows how anybody's luck will hold out.

High water everywhere

As I write this, WV is in the midst of a scary storm, one that reminds me of this Dylan song. It looks like the town of Richwood in Nicholas County is being evacuated as nearby Summit Lake (in which I have nearly drowned several times in a way that seems eerily personal) overflows its banks. Weather like this keeps my eye on the creek and often means being flooded in or power outages. My best wishes to everyone dealing with that.

McDowell County, WV has been hit with other floods, literal and metaphorical. How to respond to one of the latest is the them of the latest Front Porch podcast.

Stay dry, y'all!