Floods Sweep Mid-Atlantic States; 26 Die

Rivers swept out of their banks Tuesday in West Virginia’s worst flooding disaster, and 26 persons were killed in Maryland and the Virginias as a storm inundated the mid-Atlantic states, forcing thousands to evacuate their homes and leaving many others missing.

Some residents scrambled to safety on rooftops and in trees as floodwaters also swept through houses in North Carolina and Pennsylvania before the storm system, which had stalled over the region for four days, crept slowly northward and out to sea.

Roads Submerged

Hundreds of roads were submerged, some covered by up to 12 feet of water and others by mud slides, homes were washed away and looting was reported in isolated areas beyond the reach of police.

Forecasters warned that rivers had yet to crest in many areas.

Damage in West Virginia was described as being in the “millions and millions.”

West Virginia Gov. Arch A. Moore Jr., who mobilized the National Guard and appealed to President Reagan to designate 22 counties as disaster areas, said the flooding “covered more territory and affected more people” than any in the state’s history.

“It’s certainly, in terms of the widespread nature, got to rank as the worst flooding disaster West Virginia has ever had,” added his press secretary, John Price.

Eighteen people were killed by the storm in Virginia, most of them around Roanoke. Seven were killed in West Virginia and another in Maryland. An undetermined number were swept away by the floodwaters, including at least four in West Virginia and one in Pennsylvania.

Thousands of people were driven from their homes in Roanoke, Va., by the flooding Roanoke River, and property damage was estimated at $120 million in the area.

Helicopters Save 250

Rescuers in helicopters plucked at least 250 people from rooftops, including a state legislator and his family who were stranded atop their flooded grocery in Roanoke.

Legislator Victor Thomas said that the rescue helicopter made two trips before pulling him to safety from the market roof. He said that if the chopper had returned two minutes later, “we would have been gone. It’s just the grace of God that we’re OK.”

In the town of Weston, W.Va., among the first and hardest hit, the flooding West Fork River covered nearby Interstate 79 with water 10 to 12 feet deep, said Lewis County sheriff’s Deputy Margaret Adams.

Bridges Closed

Up to 60 barges ripped loose from moorings on the Monongahela River, which starts in West Virginia and flows past Pittsburgh to the Ohio River. Evening rush-hour traffic in Pittsburgh was tied up as police closed bridges while some of the barges swept past.

The National Weather Service predicted the Monongahela would crest at 40 feet, 16 above flood stage, at Point Marion, Pa., where police rescue worker Danny Rhodes said: “The old people in town say this is the highest they’ve ever seen it.”

Virginia Gov. Charles S. Robb declared an emergency and sent National Guard troops to help communities cope with the floods, triggered by four days of rain that dumped up to 10 inches on parts of Virginia.

Pennsylvania Evacuations

Pennsylvania Gov. Dick Thornburgh declared Allegheny, Fayette, Greene, Washington and Somerset counties as state disaster areas and freed $1 million in emergency flood relief aid for the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency. The governor also called out 600 National Guardsmen to assist rescue workers in flood-stricken areas, said gubernatorial aide David Runkel.

The state estimated at least 3,000 residents of five southwestern counties were forced from their homes by high water.

The storm also brought rain and some minor flooding in Washington, D.C., before tapering off.

Floodwaters along the upper reaches of the Potomac River caused the collapse of a temporary bridge connecting Maryland and Paw Paw, W.Va., and some of the town’s 700 residents fled to higher ground, authorities said.