The Register-Herald, Beckley, West Virginia

Local News

March 18, 2010

Bluestone Wildlife Area cleaning up from flood

By Brad Johnson Register-Herald Reporter

BLUESTONE — Very little flooding was reported along the New River near Bluestone Dam Saturday, but in other locations the river overflowed its banks and caused considerable damage, including in the Bluestone Wildlife Management Area, officials said.

“The lake water is still up about 21 feet. About half the area is still under water,” Rob Sovine, superintendent of Bluestone Wildlife Management Area, said Tuesday. “And the water has gone down about 20 feet. It was up 41 feet at one point.”

“Our facilities cover a large amount of Summers County and are located along the New River Valley from the state line to Bluestone Lake,” Sovine said. “Most of the damage includes roads washed out, debris deposited, trees across roads and, of course, the lake raised to inundate most of the Bluestone WMA.”

Sovine said there is a long list of problems created by the flooding.  “One part of our county road has a hole big enough to put a desk in,” he said. “We have logjams that will cause serious issues on the river.”

Another problem is that funds for the cleanup effort may be difficult to come by.

“The parks department is broke and we don’t have the money to do this massive cleanup,” Sovine said. “And, of course, the highway department doesn’t have the money to help, either.

“Most of the public thinks that after a flood the roads magically repair themselves and the debris somehow disappears. We, the state park employees, perform that ‘magic’ with little or no additional funding.

“WVDOH does not help with these public roads, either. It is all state park employees covering 19 miles of roads and seven camping areas,” Sovine said.

“On this past Thursday, we had just finished cleaning the river access roads and opened them to the public after the winter, only to close them off again on Friday due to rising water.”

— E-mail: bjohnson@register-herald.com



 

Text Only
Local News