Description: On July 28, 2022, torrential rains hit Eastern Kentucky, washing out homes and roads forcing people to seek shelter on rooftops. 37 people reported dead, many other had to be rescued. The steep slopes of the Appalachians allow water to rush quickly into the narrow valleys below, sometimes swamping hollows before residents have a chance to escape. In this storm, residents had 20 minutes. A three-inch rain will cause flooding – these torrential rains produced 8 – 12 inches in less than ten hours.

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Description: Hurricane Laura struck Louisiana on August 26, 2020 as a Category 4 hurricane. This hurricane was the tenth-strongest U.S. hurricane landfall by wind speed on record, with peak winds of 150 mph. On October 9, 2020 Hurricane Delta struck Louisiana in the same areas that were significantly affected by Hurricane Laura. Many homeowners had not returned home yet from evacuating from Hurricane Laura, and many homes still had tarps on their roofs from Laura. This area was also impacted by the Freeze of 2021 where many exposed pipes were frozen and then in May of 2021 received over 15 inches of rain.

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Description: October 29, 2021 a significant flooding event happened along the eastern shores of Maryland in Somerset and Dorchester Counties. It impacted the Crisfield and Cambridge areas of the State. The reason for the flood was high tide, full moon and windy conditions all at the same time. According to some local people in Crisfield this event was more damaging than Hurricane Sandy in 2012. MDS’s response after Sandy was many home repair jobs and over 25 new homes in Crisfield area.

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Description: The Camp Fire started on November 8, 2018 due to a faulty electrical line and made worse by a drought in the area. By the time it was contained on November 25, 2018, it had become the deadliest and most destructive wildfire in California history. At least 85 civilians were killed, and several civilians and firefighters were injured. The total damage from the fire was estimated at $16.5 billion, with one quarter of the damage uninsured.

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Description: In June 2018, a sudden severe storm dumped heavy rains on the mesas north of McAllen, TX, and swept into the tributaries to the Rio Grande River. This freak storm created flooding where not typically expected, as the affected homes were not in a typical flood plain.

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Description: Several flood events in the spring of 2015 damaged over 300 private stream crossings (bridges) in southwest West Virginia. Homeowners who cross streams to get to their homes are either driving through the stream bed, using a neighbor’s bridge if they can, or parking on the other side of the stream and walking across a temporary walkway or a neighboring bridge. Because these are private structures, the government cannot help directly, so the only potential assistance is voluntary organizations like MDS.

Region 1 Response

Contact Joyce Burkholder at 717-945-4136 or click the button below for more information about opportunities in West Virginia.