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Wednesday, March 4, 2015

Monongah's bridge over troubled waters. Photo by Roy Parker

As of 6 p.m. Sunday, 300 Marion County residents are without power or water.

Sub-zero temperatures, pileup of snow – and now flooding hits West Virginia

First West Virginians were hit with so much snow and cold that polar bears would be migrating to Florida.

Now the temperature rise, and so does the river levels because rainfall joins in the frolicking.

Simpson Creek is making a mess of Bridgeport

U.S. 19 is under water at White Rock, which most Monongah High alumni are familiar with, and trying to rise up to the level of the Father Briggs bridge that separates east and west Monongah as the West Fork River flows furiously below it.

Some Monongah residents are talking about the flood of 1985. I remember the 45.5 inches of snow in 4 days in 1950 that blocked the roads for a week, and then the rapid melting that flooded White Rock for another week, reaching almost up to the old railroad tracks.

Mannington isn’t doing much better, from the reports I’m reading.

My sister, Jackie Olesky Straight, Class of 1955, who lives in the outskirts of Rivesville, lost her power, her cable and couldn't get out of her driveway because the heavy snow brought a line down across her driveway. Even if she could get past the downed line, the road was too slippery to risk driving on it.

She wasn't alone. 5,496 people were without power in Marion County.

Holy smoke, even Friday's Lenten fish fry at Holy Spirit Catholic Church in Monongah has been canceled. You'll have to wait till the next three Fridays to savor the fixings by the church cooks.

Shelters have been set up for those without power at the Mannington Moose, 105 East Railroad Street; Baxter VFD on Rt. 17;
Marion County Police Reserve Building - Cityview Terrace (Wave Tec); Worthington VFD, Meadow Ridge Rd; and Eldora United Methodist Church, Sapps Run Rd.

Large chunks of ice floating down the Monongahela River ripped every dock in the Cheat Lake Marina in Morgantown. Bridgeport City Park was closed due to rising water of Simpson Creek. Severe flooding is taking place in streams and rivers all across North Central West Virginia.

Schools in more than 30 of the state’s 55 counties either closed or dismissed students early on Wednesday.

As if that isn’t bad enough, Winter Storm Thor is slapping more snow, sleet and freezing rain through Thursday.

There are personal issues affected, too. The funeral services for Patsy Colisino, Sr. had to be postponed to 10 a.m. Friday because of all the snow -- about 10 inches more on Wednesday, with White Rock closes and it taking folks up to an hour to get from Fairmont to Monongah, which normally is a 3-mile drive.

That is, good Lord willing and the river don't rise.

West Virginia Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin has issued a state of emergency.