Some Mason County residents experience flooding near site of Nscale development

“This weekend's storm dropped about a month's worth of rain on us in 48 hours and put the whole area under a Flash Flood Warning. We were on site within an hour of the first call and we haven't left," said Jason Bechtle, Monarch Site Manager, in a statement provided about the incident. "We've got restoration crews at each affected resident's garage, hotel rooms for anyone who needs one, meals for anyone impacted, and we're covering all cleanup and repair costs."

A silt fence separated at a connection point, causing the release of water after an especially rainy weekend.

"Our stormwater controls were inspected last week and found to be in compliance with the approved plan. But the intensity of this rainfall exceeded the design capacity of the temporary erosion controls in place during construction, and one section of silt fencing gave way under the force of the water. That section has already been reconstructed, and our crews are continuing to reinforce controls today across the site — cutting additional drainage channels, raising elevation in the low area to block water from moving toward the neighborhood, and layering in extra sediment protection," Bechtle said in the statement.

An inspection by the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection last Thursday determined that everything at the site was in compliance with its permit.

Meteorologists with the National Weather Service said Mason County received between 2.5 and 5 inches of rain Saturday and Sunday. Some roads were closed due to flooding.

Affected residents live in portions of the Meadowlands Estates subdivision, according to a joint statement issued by state Sen. Eric Tarr, R-Putnam, and Delegates Jonathan Pinson and Jim Butler, both R-Mason.

Five residents' garages and one crawl space were affected by the flooding, but the water did not make it into anyone’s living area.

"We are thankful the damage appears to have been limited primarily to garages, crawlspaces and HVAC equipment and no injuries have been reported," the lawmakers said. "Local and state officials have been in communication with representatives from Nscale, the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection and the Governor's Office, who coordinated an evaluation from the West Virginia National Guard. The company has acknowledged the seriousness of the situation and has already deployed cleanup crews as well as contractors to assist affected homeowners.

"We remain in communication about immediate corrective actions as well as a prevention plan to help ensure an event like this does not happen again — here or anywhere else in West Virginia."

For future flood prevention, Nscale plans to install additional fencing and diversion ditches, with pumps, are being dug. A berm drain is also being built.

"We recognize there is more rainfall in the forecast and our teams are ready and prepared to mitigate any future impact," Bechtle said in his statement. "These are our neighbors, and we'll be here until the job is done.�