Search and rescue efforts continue in West Virginia after historic flooding

(CNN) — Search and rescue operations have been underway in north-central West Virginia after heavy rains Tuesday night led to dangerous flooding, inundating homes, businesses, vehicles and roads and prompting the governor to deploy the National Guard to several communities.

No injuries or deaths had been reported as of early Wednesday afternoon – but more than 100 rescues had been made, more than a dozen helicopters were on standby and officials remained focused on searches for others and possible fatalities, Gov. Patrick Morrisey said.

The governor will give an update on storm impacts at a news conference Thursday morning, a West Virginia National Guard spokesperson said.

“We remain in a position where we’re looking to identify any individual who we might be able to save … that remains job number one: protect human life, and that’s what we’re focusing on,” the governor said during a news conference Wednesday afternoon, indicating some people were unaccounted for.

Tuesday’s flooding, which happened as severe storms also spawned tornadoes and damaging winds from Kentucky to New Jersey, prompted Morrisey to declare an emergency for all 55 counties in West Virginia on Tuesday.

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CNN has reached out to the governor’s office, as well as state and local authorities for more information.

While the worst of the storm passed, the ground remained saturated and the river levels are high with no place for the water to go, the governor said Wednesday.

The West Virginia National Guard is helping with search and rescue efforts and will stay until the process shifts “toward debris removal, infrastructure support and recovery,” the governor said Wednesday. More than 500 troops are deployed across the region, Maj. Gen. Jim Seward, the West Virginia National Guard Adjutant General, said Wednesday.

The hardest-hit areas included Lewis, Pleasants and Upshur counties, where flooding triggered emergency response efforts including dozens of water rescues, the governor’s office said. Roughly 47,000 people live in those three counties, according to US Census estimates.

“This is a time for West Virginians to come together to do everything possible, not only to pray for all those who are affected, but we’re going to need a lot of help in the days and weeks ahead,” Morrisey said Wedensday. “Let’s help these communities rebuild.”

Washed-out roads and impassable streets have cut off parts of Buckhannon in Upshur County, making the full extent of the damage difficult to assess.

“Right now, that’s our problem,” the city of Buckhannon said in a Facebook post Wednesday morning. “Our city is spliced up by the flood waters in such a way that there’s not a central place for everyone to access at this time.”

“This is simply too much for any one system to take on,” Buckhannon Mayor Robbie Skinner said during Wednesday’ news conference. “This is heartbreaking, this is not something you want to see in your hometown.”

The town of just over 5,000 residents sits about 85 miles northeast of the state capital, Charleston.

“Numerous roads have been flooded, washed out, or otherwise rendered impassable, while emergency responders continue conducting rescues, damage assessments and life-safety operations throughout the county,” the Upshur County Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management said Wednesday.

In Weston in neighboring Lewis County, a swollen river and creek spilled brown water over streets and parking lots Wednesday, sometimes reaching the doors of homes and buildings, and leaving mud and debris in their wake, aerial video from the West Virginia National Guard showed.

A Walmart in Weston was flooded during the storm, along with the parking lot, photos show. Walmart said the safety of workers and customers is a “top priority” in a statement to CNN.

“We’re heartbroken by the devastation in West Virginia,” the statement read. “We’re working hand-in-hand with local leaders and first responders to help provide the resources and support they need.”

Additionally, a car was submerged in a sinkhole in Fayetteville after heavy rains pounded the area.

‘I’ve never seen the water rise as fast’

Storms dropped more than 5 inches of rain in about six hours in parts of Upshur County Tuesday afternoon – the highest amount recorded was 7.6 inches just south of Buckhannon. The National Weather Service issued a flash flood emergency, the highest level of flood warning, and labeled the event as a “particularly dangerous situation.”

Jonny Reed grabbed his young son and rushed out of his house in Buckhannon Tuesday evening as floodwaters rose. One minute after he dashed off his porch, a storage shed floated by, his home surveillance video showed. It was followed shortly after by a felled tree and an upright all-terrain vehicle that looked as though it was driving itself, dragged along by the current.

“I’ve never seen the water rise as fast as it did today,” Reed said in a Tuesday post on Facebook, later telling CNN that his family was safe and the damage to his home was minor.

A video from Buckhannon shot by Evan Bacorn showed a vehicle flooded up to its windows as a garbage container floated down the street. Some drivers tried to power their trucks through the flooding as water splashed over their running boards.

Nearly 10 miles of Interstate 79 were closed Wednesday morning between the communities of Weston and Jane Lew in Lewis County, the state Division of Highways said.

In Jane Lew, the town park was overwhelmed by flooding from nearby Hackers Creek, video from CNN affiliate WDTV showed. Brown, murky water swallowed the base of street signs and submerged the park’s baseball fields.

The flooding reached historic levels. The Sand Run stream gauge near Buckhannon crested above 10.6 feet Tuesday night, shattering the previous record of 8.3 feet set during the devastating 1985 flood. It was the first time in roughly 80 years of record keeping that the gauge had reached major flood stage. In 1985, severe flooding in Upshur County killed 47 people and destroyed thousands of homes and hundreds of businesses.

A five-block stretch of homes along the Buckhannon River was evacuated early Wednesday morning, while all other county residents were advised to shelter in place.

Assessing the extent of the damage was made more difficult Wednesday by communications outages.

The Upshur County Department of Homeland Security and Emergency warned that phone services in the area — including 911 — may experience delays or outages due to disruptions caused by the flooding.

The governor’s emergency declaration allows state agencies to coordinate resources and deploy personnel as needed.

The state’s emergency management team began deploying responders to the most affected areas Tuesday evening, according to Lt. Stephen Lindsey of the Bruceton Brandonville Volunteer Fire Department.

Lindsey and his crew made their way through a maze of flooded roads to reach downtown Weston on Tuesday evening, where floodwater had risen above some stop signs. Responding to 911 calls from residents and others who needed help on the ground, his team rescued seven adults, four children and several pets.

Responders from other counties, some more than three hours away, traveled to affected areas to assist, Lindsey said.

About 7,000 customers across several north-central West Virginia counties were without power as of Thursday morning, according to PowerOutage.us. Outages affected Stonewall Jackson Memorial Hospital in Weston, which was using a generator to provide medical care, Morrisey said Wednesday.

The West Virginia Emergency Management Division opened a shelter at Lewis County High School for residents displaced by the flooding. Shelters also are open at Buckhannon Church of the Nazarene and Philippi Middle School, the governor said.

“The devastation across our county is extensive. Businesses, homes, vehicles, and countless personal belongings have been damaged or destroyed, and the full extent of the losses is still unknown,” Lewis County Commissioner Agnes Quinn Queen posted to Facebook Wednesday morning, saying water rescues had been going on for hours.

Even as offers of help pour in, officials in Upshur County are urging people to wait until there is a better sense of the extent of damage.

“At this time, however, volunteers and organizations are asked not to self-deploy to affected areas,” the Upshur County Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management said. “Uncoordinated response efforts can create additional safety hazards, increase traffic congestion and complicate ongoing emergency operations.”

Tornadoes and damaging winds out east

Rain largely moved out of West Virginia on Wednesday, but rivers and streams in the central part of the state were forecast to keep rising as runoff moves through the watershed.

The same storm system responsible for the flooding also produced multiple tornadoes and damaging winds farther north and east. Tornadoes were reported in Kentucky, Ohio and New Jersey on Tuesday, including one in Clermont County, Ohio.

Denise Davis, who lives in Clermont County, told CNN affiliate WKRC she brought her grandchildren to the basement as soon as she heard the tornado warning.

“The winds picked up, the lights were flickering, and then I heard a real loud bang, which of course was the tree falling onto the house,” she said.

Davis added that everyone was in a safe position under the basement stairs when the tree fell.

“I cried, and then the grandbabies were crying,” she said, recounting the moment she first saw the tree on her house. “I just don’t know what to do from here.”

Two tornadoes were also observed in northern New Jersey after supercell thunderstorms moved over the area.

More than 100,000 customers across Kentucky, Ohio and New Jersey lost power on Tuesday night, but service had been restored to most by Wednesday midday, when fewer than 21,000 outages remained, according to PowerOutage.us.

Flash flood warnings were issued for New York City Tuesday afternoon, but were lifted later in the evening.

New York City’s sewer system, built more than a century ago, is designed to handle only about 1.75 inches of rainfall per hour.

In recent years, as extreme weather events have become more common, the system has shown its limits. When it backs up under the pressure of large amounts of rainfall in short periods of time, the result is flooded streets in low-lying areas, homes and subway stations.

This story has been updated with additional information.

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CNN’s Gloria Pazmino, Julianna Bragg, Danya Gainor, David Williams, Lauren Mascarenhas, Chris Boyette, Avni Trivedi, Tanika Gray, Cindy Von Quednow and Maria Aguilar Prieto contributed to this report.