West Virginia experienced its deadliest flood in nine years in June when flash flooding ravaged Marion and Ohio counties on June 14-15. The disaster left nine people dead and caused millions of dollars in damages that only begin to quantify the devastation inflicted through deluged workplaces, transportation obstacles and personal losses.
Some of those costs, though, can be quantified, and they underscore how quickly expenses incurred in responding to sudden, heavy rainstorms can add up — especially in flood-prone West Virginia.
Labor, equipment and other costs incurred by the state in its response to the June flood exceeded at least $600,000, according to records obtained by the Gazette-Mail via Freedom of Information Act requests.
The records from the West Virginia Department of Transportation and West Virginia Division of Natural Resources show that nearly two-dozen DNR employees worked, and were allotted compensation for overtime hours, to contribute to search, rescue and recovery efforts. They show that the DOT oversaw removal of over 5,400 cubic yards of debris — equivalent to roughly 150,000 standard-sized soil bags from a home improvement store.
But despite the historically deadly flooding and hundreds of thousands of dollars in expenses incurred by the state in response to the flood, the Federal Emergency Management Agency has not granted state requests for Public Assistance — a FEMA program that supports state and local governments and certain local nonprofits.
In a June 20 letter addressed to President Donald Trump asking for the emergency and major disaster declarations for Marion and Ohio counties, Gov. Patrick Morrisey cited a preliminary state Division of Highways estimate that road damage repair costs would exceed $5.5 million. Just over $1.1 million was potentially eligible for reimbursement under FEMA’s Public Assistance program, Morrisey said.
Major Disaster Declarations often take months for the federal government to issue after severe weather events, but Emergency Declarations traditionally have come just days after such events. Major Disaster Declarations provide a broad set of federal assistance programs for individuals and public infrastructure, including funding for emergency and permanent work. Emergency Declarations are a different type of declaration that unlock federal assistance for emergency services capped at $5 million.
Morrisey reported to Trump that the Division of Highways was working to repair 41 miles of road in Ohio County and 29 miles of road in Marion County.
Morrisey said a West Virginia National Guard preliminary estimate that clearing flood-soaked debris out of homes and taking it to the public right-of-way for disposal was just over $1 million.
The records reviewed by the Gazette-Mail span DOT labor, equipment, material and invoice expenses from June 15 to July 24 and DNR expenses from June 15 to June 26 for labor, equipment and lodging, including nearly $1,500 for responders to stay at the Microtel Inn & Suites by Wyndham Wheeling at the Highlands in Triadelphia through June 17. The records also include a $200 cost for mileage incurred through state Division of Emergency Management delivery of donated cleanup kits and buckets.
FEMA denied a West Virginia request submitted June 20 for Public Assistance via an Emergency Declaration on July 22, according to a FEMA Daily Operations Briefing. FEMA approved a West Virginia Major Disaster Declaration for Individual Assistance for Marion and Ohio counties the same day, according to FEMA records — 33 days after the Morrisey administration submitted its request.
Individual Assistance is a FEMA program that provides funds directly to eligible individuals and families.
FEMA has obligated over $5.4 million in Public Assistance grant dollars in line with its Major Disaster Declaration issued Feb. 26 in response to flooding that triggered a State of Emergency for 14 counties and left three people dead in McDowell County.
Logan, McDowell, Mercer, Mingo, Raleigh, Wayne and Wyoming counties were approved as eligible for Public Assistance and Individual Assistance, with just Public Assistance designated for Boone, Greenbrier, Lincoln, Monroe and Summers counties, according to a state Emergency Management Division notice published in April.
Drew Galang, Morrisey’s deputy press secretary, said West Virginia was still waiting on a federal decision on a request the state submitted for Public Assistance on July 23 as an add-on to its request for a Major Disaster Declaration after a joint review between state and federal partners.
FEMA records show no decision on that application. The agency did not respond to requests for comment on that application.
A FEMA spokesperson did say the agency doesn’t approve some disaster declaration requests “after a thorough assessment shows the event’s damage does not exceed the state, local governments, and voluntary organizations’ capacity to respond.â€
“FEMA will continue to support Americans impacted by disasters no matter the state or jurisdiction they live in, allowing local governments to lead the response managed by their states,†the spokesperson said.
A July Gazette-Mail investigation of years of FEMA records showed the agency’s rate of declaration approvals slowed significantly and its backlog of declaration requests from states and federally recognized tribes had doubled since Trump took office on Jan. 20.
Since then, FEMA has been dogged by layoffs and uncertainty over its long-term future, with Trump calling for a shutdown of the agency — an act that would require legislative action. A Trump administration workforce reduction program lowered the agency’s employee count by 1,465 as of June 1, according to a U.S. Government Accountability Office report focused on federal response workforce readiness released Tuesday.
The number of active FEMA employees fell 9.5%, from about 25,800 on Jan. 1 to about 23,350 as of June 1, according to the report, which said FEMA officials reported the agency “now faces significant skills gaps in its leadership cadre.†Officials at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Environmental Protection Agency also expressed concerns about meeting disaster response mission responsibilities due to workforce reductions, according to the report.
Late last month, 191 FEMA employees signed a letter to members of the FEMA Review Council, a Trump administration-established body intended to advise the president on FEMA’s ability to address disasters, saying the agency “has been under the leadership of individuals lacking legal qualifications†since January.
In the letter, the employees opposed the Trump administration’s termination of the Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities program, which has supported states and local governments in their work to lower hazard risks. The Association of State Floodplain Managers called that move “beyond reckless†in an April statement.
The employees also said Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem has made it harder for FEMA to perform its missions swiftly by requiring a personal review and approval of all contracts, grants and mission assignments over $100,000.
In response to the employees’ letter, a FEMA spokesperson claimed in an emailed statement that the Trump administration “has made accountability and reform a priority so that taxpayer dollars actually reach the people and communities they are meant to help.â€
“Change is always hard,†the spokesperson said.
DOT records show $590K in costsÂ
DOT records show its Division of Highways District 4 incurred over $590,000 in total costs in response to the flooding through July 24, including roughly $132,000 in labor costs. Debris removal was the most common response activity, with other activities including ditch obstacle removal, pipe installation and riprapping, a practice of placing large rocks or other materials along slope bases to prevent erosion.
DNR records show just shy of $50,000 in labor costs, with employees logging over 200 overtime hours. DNR employees took part in search, rescue and recovery efforts, including those by boat and on foot, per the records. The DNR also incurred roughly $65 in costs to use a chainsaw intended for a swift-water team to remove vehicles from Wheeling Creek and its bank.
Morrisey’s office said in a June 17 news release the DNR had assisted in over 40 successful swift-water rescues, deployed two ground/foot teams, one swift-water rescue team and one swift-water support unit. The DNR had removed 14 vehicles from the river, with each cleared to ensure no occupants were inside, Morrisey’s office said, adding that the agency’s ground operations had removed locations of debris.
The DOT was restoring roadways and inspecting bridges, clearing debris to aid first responders and the public, and helping remove and transfer debris off roads to a local landfill, Morrisey’s office said.
Morrisey’s office reported 12 roads were closed for cleanup, including U.S. Route 40, with four bridges also closed.
The DEP inspected facilities in Marion and Ohio counties in response to the flooding, per Morrisey’s office.
WV Congress members quiet on FEMA reform proposal
Appalachian community advocacy groups have thrown their support behind a bipartisan federal legislation designed to make FEMA aid more accessible. The Fixing Emergency Management for Americans (FEMA) Act of 2025, H.R. 4699, would reform FEMA Public Assistance in part by:
- Directing the FEMA administrator, when making recommendations to the president regarding the declaration of a major disaster or emergency or the proposed nonfederal share of disaster assistance, to give greater consideration to disasters impacting economically distressed or rural areas
- Clarifying removal of debris is in the public interest to support more expeditious recovery following a disaster
- Providing alternate procedures for states to request lump-sum payments for small disasters
The legislation would direct the FEMA administrator to publish an online Public Assistance dashboard that displays information for each major disaster declaration on cost estimates, the status of agency review and approval, project-level progress updates and other relevant information. It also would require the president to provide an explanation upon the approval or denial of disaster declaration requests and direct the Government Accountability Office to study the effect of Public Assistance for public infrastructure on insurance use for eligible facilities.
The House of Representatives Transportation and Infrastructure Committee on Wednesday advanced the FEMA Act in a 57-3 vote.
West Virginia’s two House members, Reps. Carol Miller and Riley Moore, both Republicans, don’t sit on the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.
Miller and Moore spokespeople did not respond to requests for comment on the legislation or Appalachian community advocacy groups’ call for eliminating or reducing Public Assistance matching requirements for economically distressed communities and making permanent private road and bridge repair to restore residential access an allowable use of FEMA Public Assistance funding.
Neither did spokespeople for Senate Environment and Public Works Committee Chair Shelley Moore Capito or Sen. Jim Justice, both R-W.Va.
Miller and Moore are not among 14 House members — nine Republicans and five Democrats — listed as bill sponsors or cosponsors.
Kevin Zedack, government affairs specialist at Appalachian Voices, a regional environmental and community advocacy group, called the FEMA Act’s support for economically distressed and rural communities “a boon for Appalachian communities building pre-disaster resilience and recovering after a disaster†in a statement.
Zedack called on Congress to do more to accommodate small, local budgets with higher federal cost shares to allow recovery and resilience projects.
Dana Kuhnline, program director of ReImagine Appalachia, asserted in a statement the FEMA Act has the potential to “has the potential to create a lot of jobs — from mitigation work to help prevent the worst impacts of flooding to rebuilding our towns after disasters strike.â€
Billion-dollar disaster frequency has grown sharply in WVÂ
Natural disasters have become more frequent as climate change has worsened, a long-term trend expected to further strain FEMA and other emergency resources throughout the U.S. in years to come.
The U.S. experienced one inflation-adjusted billion-dollar disaster every four months in the 1980s, according to the most recent congressionally mandated National Climate Assessment, released in 2023 and removed from its original website under the Trump administration. The assessment found that disaster frequency had escalated to one every three weeks on average.
Nearly a quarter of West Virginia’s billion-dollar disasters from 1980 to 2024 (11 out of 45; 24%) came in just the last five years of that span, according to National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration data.
