West Virginia Still Struggling Against Floods

Rescue workers faced a “logistical nightmare” Friday trying to get aid to remote sections of flooded West Virginia, while drenched communities in Maryland, Virginia and Pennsylvania began to mop up and assess their damage.

“Some people are still cut off because the bridges are out,” said John Gallagher of the West Virginia Highway Department. “We have to get the roads open first so we can get trucks in and put in temporary bridges.”

The flooding, brought by four days of heavy rains, killed 20 people in West Virginia, 20 people in Virginia, one in Maryland and one in Pennsylvania.

Red Cross volunteers streamed into West Virginia on Friday from as far away as Louisiana to distribute food and clothing. National Guard units delivered drinking water to scores of communities whose supplies were contaminated by dead livestock and sewage from swamped treatment plants.

However, more than 100 roads remained closed and Red Cross vouchers entitling victims to purchase essential supplies proved of little use in areas where there were no stores left for miles.

“That’s an obstacle that we really haven’t had too much experience in dealing with,” said Red Cross spokesman Jim Daw. “It’s a logistical nightmare. It’s so widespread and the area involved is so rural.”

Despite the thousands reported homeless, many emergency shelters were almost empty Friday as flood victims moved in with friends, relatives and even strangers.

“We have one family in Albright that took 50 people in,” said Preston County emergency official John Wills. “I don’t know what they did with them all. I imagine some slept in the barn.”

Eight West Virginia counties have been designated as federal disaster areas, and Gov. Arch Moore said the White House is studying requests for aid in 14 other counties. State officials estimated damage at more than $200 million.

In Richmond, Va., the muddy James River was not expected to be back within its banks until Sunday, which meant that raw sewage was flowing into the river.

Broad Street, Richmond’s main downtown strip, was reopened Friday, as were two of the three bridges over the river, including the Interstate 95 crossing. The city’s public schools also reopened.

Two teen-age canoeists last seen paddling in the river Thursday were winched aboard a National Guard helicopter Friday from the tree-limb perches where they had clung for more than 20 hours, police said.

Five petroleum tanks that had been listing on their foundations on the south bank of the James were righted Friday, but a sixth tank filled with 500,000 gallons of leaded gasoline has developed a slow leak, officials said.

Gov. Charles S. Robb on Friday asked President Reagan to declare as disaster areas 11 localities in western Virginia.