‘It’s really dire’: Mingo County still reeling after flood

By Stephen Baldwin, RealWV

Ten days ago, devastating floods struck southern West Virginia. Some parts of the state, including Mingo County, are struggling to get back on their feet. 

“It’s really dire,” says Brittney Baisden, a math teacher at Tug Valley High School. “If you took a drive from Kermit down 119 to Pikeville (KY), it’s sheer devastation.”

Baisden said some areas have yet to receive assistance. “We heard about Delorme yesterday,” she said. “It’s a small town near Matewan that hasn’t been helped.” 

While she and her family weren’t personally impacted by the floodwaters, she says the impact has hit the entire community hard. 

“We have students we can’t even get a hold of,” she says, fighting back tears. “We were without a grocery store for a week. Some people have been told it will be a month or more to get their utilities back. We have people trying to find shelters. People around us were decimated.” 

Baisden says the employees at her school are returning on Wednesday to try and assess damage, contact students, and determine a path forward. “I know one student of mine, their entire house was demolished. The whole place is in upheaval.”

Lenore Community Center

Despite the difficulties in Mingo County, community leaders are rising to the occasion. 

Elizabeth Evans runs the Lenore Community Center. Baisden says she doesn’t know how Evans is doing all that’s she doing, saying, “She’s working herself to death.” 

“Everyday I leave the gym (community center), I am in awe of the day,” Evans says. “We saw a lot (of people) at the gym today and delivered even more! Yet we still got two huge shipments this evening and we are stocked up and ready to go for the morning.”  

In addition to serving as a central hub for supplies, the community center is serving hot meals as often as they can for local residents. If people can’t get there to eat, Evans loads up the food in her car and takes it to them herself. 

“She is amazing, and Katelyn Brewer too (a leader at the nearby Kermit Community Center),” says Baisden. “Small towns get the reputation of there being nothing here for you, but sometimes in times like these you realize what you do have–the people. You may not have the salary or the jobs, but you have the people around you that will do anything for you and that is more important. 

How you can help

The Lenore and Kermit Community Centers are a dropoff point for flood relief supplies. Specifically, they need food, cleaning supplies, and personal hygiene products.

If you prefer to make a donation, you can give to Baisden’s church via this PayPal link. They are forwarding all donations to the community centers directly.  

State officials are waiting on FEMA to respond to their request for a Major Disaster Declaration. Baisden isn’t focused on that, as she says neighbors are taking care of neighbors the best they can right now. 

“The great part about living in a small town,” she says, “is our people work together.”