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Being very mountainous I guess flooding goes with the territory. But are there major towns that rarely if never see floods?
There are lots of them. I can't recall any flooding in the city of Charleston since 1961. Huntington has closed the flood wall a couple of times in the past 50 years, but no flooding (other than the underpasses). Beckley and Bluefield are at higher elevations. The entire state is mountainous. If you think one location looks prone to flooding, look at the next mountain over.
I know in my memory there have been significant floods in Nicholas County, in Welch, in Clendenin and Elkview, and other places in the southeastern part of the state.
I can't recall a single time in my memory when the Ohio River overflowed its banks along West Virginia's border.
I'm sure some of the other members can add to this.
There are lots of them. I can't recall any flooding in the city of Charleston since 1961. Huntington has closed the flood wall a couple of times in the past 50 years, but no flooding (other than the underpasses). Beckley and Bluefield are at higher elevations. The entire state is mountainous. If you think one location looks prone to flooding, look at the next mountain over.
I know in my memory there have been significant floods in Nicholas County, in Welch, in Clendenin and Elkview, and other places in the southeastern part of the state.
I can't recall a single time in my memory when the Ohio River overflowed its banks along West Virginia's border.
I'm sure some of the other members can add to this.
Agree with all of what MENSA said. As far as the Ohio, there's the occasional flood, but it never reaches into any of the cities along the river. Huntington, Parkersburg, Pt. Pleasant all have floodwalls that hardly ever get used. Huntington's gates for instance probably get closed once every 5 years or so and that's just out of an overabundance of caution.
What's a larger issue is creek flooding. That's a lot more prevalent throughout the state than any of the major rivers. So you'll see localized flooding in neighborhoods but it's almost always brief and rarely anything more serious than water in basements
The Ohio has numerous times flooded Wheeling Island. There is even a wall that lists all the flooding on the island. The last time was 2018. Blennerhassett Island Island near Parkersburg has also flooded many times and also did in 2018. Parkersburg itself hasn't flooded since the flood wall built in 1950 that is good to 62 feet. Wheeling city likewise hasn't flooded in at least 60 years or more. Most the cities built walls to protect themselves along the Ohio in the 50's. The Ohio River actually went almost completely dry on October 15th in 1908.It's hard to believe a river that large could go dry. Yes I doubt any town on the Ohio has flooded for at least 70 years because of the walls built. My grandmother who was born in 1899 remembered flooding as a child and told me about it.
The Ohio has numerous times flooded Wheeling Island. There is even a wall that lists all the flooding on the island. The last time was 2018. Blennerhassett Island Island near Parkersburg has also flooded many times and also did in 2018. Parkersburg itself hasn't flooded since the flood wall built in 1950 that is good to 62 feet. Wheeling city likewise hasn't flooded in at least 60 years or more. Most the cities built walls to protect themselves along the Ohio in the 50's. The Ohio River actually went almost completely dry on October 15th in 1908.It's hard to believe a river that large could go dry. Yes I doubt any town on the Ohio has flooded for at least 70 years because of the walls built. My grandmother who was born in 1899 remembered flooding as a child and told me about it.
It looked a lot different back then. That was prior to the dams being built. It's naturally a shallow river, as low as about 3 ft. in certain areas. Now it's a fairly consistent 20-25 ft.
South Branch of the Potomac floods pretty frequently, sometimes with catastrophic results. Floods in 1936, 1985, and 1996 were all devastating.
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