The death toll from flooding in the U.S. state of West Virginia rose to
24, as U.S. President Barack Obama declared a major disaster, releasing
federal aid for the hardest-hit areas.
Days of heavy rain,
especially on June 23 and June 24, caused massive flooding in the state,
where high waters have washed away cars, trapped hundreds and cut power
to large areas.
The president “ordered federal aid to supplement
state and local recovery efforts in the area affected by severe storms,
flooding, landslides and mudslides,” the White House said in a
statement June 25.
The latest fatality from the flooding was
reported June 25 in Greenbrier County, bringing the death toll to 24,
state spokeswoman Jessica Tice told AFP.
More than 21,300 people
remained without power across the state late June 25, according to the
West Virginia Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management
(WVDHSEM).
Hundreds of homes had been severely damaged or destroyed and more than 60 roads remained closed, it said.
Photos
on the division’s Facebook page showed a muddy, swollen river in the
West Virginia town of Clendenin that had spilled over its banks and
inundated a nearby neighborhood with floodwater.
The federal
support “will provide much needed assistance to severely-impacted
regions,” West Virginia Governor Earl Ray Tomblin said in a statement.
“As
emergency response efforts continue, with members of the National Guard
and local emergency responders hard at work helping our neighbors, we
will continue pursuing additional assistance for all affected areas.”