— Southern West Virginia residents continued to mop up floodwaters and shovel sludge Monday, working to clean out their homes and rebuild their lives.

Some have no home left at all.

Raleigh and Fayette counties were slammed late Friday night and early Saturday with flooding from a combination of torrential rain and lingering piles of snow on already saturated ground. The National Weather Service estimates about three inches of rain fell in Beckley between 7 a.m. Friday and 7 a.m. Saturday.

The Beaver area was the hardest-hit in Raleigh County, and the worst Fayette County damage was in areas near Dunloup Creek.

The storm left one woman dead in the Bradley area, and a Kanawha County volunteer firefighter is still missing.

Personnel from agencies such as the Federal Emergency Management Agency have been surveying damage in Raleigh County and will continue to do so today, said Marty Agee, deputy director of the Raleigh County Emergency Operations Center. Other agencies that have been in the county or will arrive include the Small Business Administration.

FEMA, Agee said, has given the EOC preliminary damage reports. Agee noted these numbers only include single- or multi-family homes and not businesses and other structures. The agency’s damage assessment work has yet to be completed.

A total of 16 destroyed homes have been counted in Raleigh County, she said, and 33 have major damage.

The Beaver area has five destroyed homes, 14 with major damage, seven with minor damage and nine that have been affected in some way. The Sullivan area has 10 destroyed homes, 11 with major damage and less than 10 with minor damage.

Mabscott has one destroyed residence, seven with major damage, four with minor damage and five affected. The C&O Dam Road and Forest Road area has one home with major damage, one with minor and one affected.

Agee noted the Mabscott area has sustained major flood damage, as well. About 10 to 12 businesses and 10 to 15 homes have been affected. The town’s fire department had about 18 inches of water in its station. Meadows Oil Company was inoperable Monday. Beaver’s damage was in a wider area, but Mabscott’s damage was severe, too.

Authorities are also working to clean up debris, Agee said. If the flood debris clogs streams and creeks, that could create problems if more heavy rain strikes.

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The search has continued for a missing Kanawha County firefighter who disappeared early Saturday during a rescue mission in Beaver.

The firefighter has been identified as 32-year-old Donald Adkins, according to a report from The Associated Press. Adkins is a member of the Glasgow Volunteer Fire Department.

Gov. Joe Manchin said Saturday that Adkins was part of a swift water rescue team working in the Beaver area. He and two others were in a boat when the motor struck a piece of submerged material.

The governor said the motor’s power went out and the boat drifted away and capsized. The other two team members made it to safety.

Robbie Bailey, an assistant state fire marshal, said the agencies involved are still in a “search mode” and have not shifted to a recovery mode. The state Division of Homeland Security’s Twitter page indicated Adkins had been “presumed lost” and that the search had moved to recovery mode.

Bailey said the third day of the search for Adkins is now focusing on more remote areas of Piney Creek, such as ones near the YMCA Youth Sports Complex in Beckley. Agencies from inside and outside Raleigh County were stationed at a command post there Monday.

These remote areas of Piney Creek are very dangerous, Bailey said. Terrain is very treacherous, with several steep drop-offs and cliffs. Responders do have their needed equipment, and each team has an emergency medical service crew with them.

The searches are being suspended at night for safety reasons, but the command post will continue operating overnight, Bailey said. Personnel will watch the creek at night, and the searches will resume at daybreak.

Water conditions in the Beaver area have improved, but they are still very elevated, Bailey said. Water levels in Piney Creek are still higher than normal.

“I don’t live in the area, but I work in the area frequently,” he said. “It’s definitely the highest water I’ve seen in Beaver.”

Even though the Beaver Volunteer Fire Department’s station flooded, the department is still operational, Bailey said. Beaver firefighters handled an Interstate 64 vehicle accident early Monday. The station has been cleaned out enough to park trucks inside. Although damage to the station was “substantial,” none was to any fire engines.

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The state Department of Health and Human Resources is advising residents that floodwater exposure alone is not a reason to get a tetanus shot. Some state residents cleaning up their flooded homes are asking when they should get a shot.

Immunization Services Director Jeff Neccuzi said getting tetanus vaccinations in shorter-than-normal intervals increases the risk of a severe local reaction.

The state Bureau of Public Health has recommended screening for the following groups: individuals lacking a complete series of tetanus-containing vaccine or anyone who has not had a booster dose in the last 10 years. Anyone who has a more severe or dirty wound should receive a booster if more than five years have elapsed since his/her last booster.

Agee also advised residents that affected homes could develop mildew and mold.

Raleigh County residents can report damage to the EOC at 304-255-9312.

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