By Matt de Simone
Buchanan saw the James River creep into town following weekend rains that began Saturday and lasted through that day and night reaching unseen levels in the last 20 years.
Botetourt County Fire & EMS personnel were set to face the challenges of the flooding following a week that saw more snow and ice come to the area. The department’s Chief Jason Ferguson recently shared that emergency personnel coordinated with the county’s Special Operations Team to ensure there were water rescue personnel on standby if they were needed.
“Boats were checked and repositioned in stations for more immediate deployment,” Ferguson explained. “This event was unique in that the grounds all around the county were saturated from melted snow and ice, as significant additional rains fell. Crews identified areas where water was flowing across roadways from run-off, where there are no creeks or streams, as well as creeks and streams leaving their banks. Last, but certainly not least, was the almost 22-foot height reached by the James River in Buchanan.”
Ferguson noted that the department uses historical flood data and institutional knowledge to know when the waters may exceed 21 feet. The weekend’s flooding impacted a “handful” of locations. Despite one car ending up in a closed section of Parkway Drive, the driver was able to self-rescue and call for assistance, Ferguson added.
The Town of Buchanan took to social media on Sunday to share photos taken along Lowe Street where the water had submerged areas of Town Park and Twin River Outfitters.
Town Manager Angela Lawrence shared the town’s social media Monday, “What a difference a day makes,” in response to the flooding that occurred Sunday. As of Monday morning, Lawrence shared that Route 43 was still under some water at that time, but the waters appeared to have gone back down significantly.
“A few businesses were affected,” Lawrence shared when asked about the weekend flooding. “Twin Rivers Outfitters had flooding in both buildings. They are cleaning up and expect everything to be in good condition when they open in April.
“Mrs. B’s Restaurant had flooding in their basement,” Lawrence added. “I haven’t seen it but understand they will open (this week). They have been appreciative of those in the community who helped get things to higher ground. We are still assessing all of the water and sewer facilities but so far it looks good. The water supply was not affected.”
Elsewhere, Eagle Rock area had flood waters from Craig Creek first blocking Craig Creek Road at Roaring Run, then at Ball Park Road, Chief Ferguson went on to explain.
“Additionally, Craig Creek was out of its banks along 606 on the Craig County end, cutting off vehicular travel into the Oriskany area,” Ferguson said. “Thankfully, there were no emergency responses into that area of the community, otherwise water rescue assets would have been added to the regular fire and EMS resources.”
In Blue Ridge, Ferguson noted the notification of the Rainbow Forest Lake reaching a Level 2 dam status. “This is a notification set as part of the NWS coordination for dam safety, whereby once that lake reaches a certain fill level, a Level 2 dam status alerts those in the area on the downside of the dam, that the potential for dam failure is heightened. Our office was made aware of the situation ahead of the alert and emergency management personnel were on site to evaluate the situation and actions taking place.”
When the waters were at their highest, heavy winds arrived causing “numerous responses” for fallen trees on power lines and lines down across some roadways.
The chief explained that “aside from the fire trucks and ambulances seen on the streets in Botetourt daily, there is a large amount of activity behind the scenes, participating in National Weather Service briefings, making county officials and emergency personnel aware of predicted forecasts, public messaging, collaborative staffing increases, equipment and apparatus readiness activities, patrolling of prone areas of flooding, all in addition to responding to routine fire and emergency medical calls for service.”
The Virginia Department of Emergency Management has flood preparedness information available at www.vaemergency.gov/threats/floods. Most notably is advising to not walk, swim, or drive through flood waters. Just six inches of moving water can knock a person down, and one foot of moving water can sweep a vehicle away.
