Authorities in a remote part of southwest Virginia have located the 44 people who were reported missing after sudden and strong storms washed some homes from their foundations.
No one was killed in the floods in Buchanan County, Virginia, but one person was injured by a snake bite, Buchanan County Deputy Director Eric Breeding told a news conference Thursday.
A number of search operations continue to make sure no one else is missing or injured, said Billy Chrimes, a search and rescue specialist at the Virginia Department of Emergency Management.
Powerful floods ravaged more than 100 homes on Tuesday, devastating the community at the foot of the Appalachian Mountains.
“Well, they’re just landslides of mud, trees and roads. There’s water on the road and there are houses on the road, and it’s just a disaster,” Archie White, a Buchanan County resident, told CBS News.
Storms during the night caused landslides and debris that blocked roads and bridges that were completely washed away.
Virginia Department of Emergency Management officials said the fallen power lines and fallen cell towers are making it difficult to contact dozens still missing.
“As they return to the shelter, we’ll do the reunion and we’ll be able to tick that box, where they lived, you know, and we’ll basically go from house to house and find out these things,” the Virginia Department said. Billy Chrimes, specialist in emergency management search and rescue.
According to Appalachian Power, due to widespread outages, some 3,700 homes are without electricity.
This region is no stranger to recent bad weather. Last August, the remnants of Hurricane Ida ravaged homes and killed one person. Less than a year later, residents say they have been abused again.
“Everything was gone. I mean small communities right here, people lost everything, and it’s sad,” one resident said.
As electricity and cellular service are restored, officials expect the number of non-accounting residents to decline.
The sheriff’s office has created a hotline for residents to add names to the search list. This number is 1-833-748-1424.