Flooding Forces Thousands to Flee Appalachian Homes

Rivers swollen by rain from the remnants of Hurricane Juan surged out of their banks in the central Appalachians on Monday, forcing thousands from their homes, closing more than a hundred highways and sweeping away cars and pickup trucks.

At least three storm-related deaths were reported, and one person was missing.

Tornadoes also caused scattered damage on North Carolina’s Outer Banks, wind gusted to 59 m.p.h. at the town of Hatteras, and a 16-foot sperm whale washed ashore and died near Nags Head, officials said.

A state of emergency was declared in parts of Virginia, and the National Guard was called out in West Virginia. Snow fell in the higher elevations of the Appalachians. John Price, spokesman for West Virginia Gov. Arch A. Moore Jr., said that “evacuations number in the thousands.”

In Weston, W.Va., the West Fork River, swollen by three inches of rain in 24 hours, was expected to crest at 27 feet, 10 feet above flood stage.

Two persons were killed when their pickup truck was swept off a road near Elkins, W.Va., about 35 miles east of Weston.

A woman, reported to be about 50, was found dead in Mason Creek in Salem, Va., and a 10-year-old boy was listed as missing.

Up to four inches of snow was reported on the Blue Ridge Parkway in Tennessee and North Carolina, the weather service said.

Price said 133 West Virginia highways were closed because of the flooding.

Between 500 and 1,500 residents in West Virginia’s Harrison County had been evacuated, Fred Smart, director of the county’s emergency services, said.

In the Roanoke area of western Virginia, cars floated along flooded roads, and at least 20 house trailers disappeared in the water in the Roanoke River.