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05/12/2009
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Hoppy's Commentary Wednesday
Gilbert, Mingo County
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When you cover a flood--and I've covered a few--you are at first drawn to the dramatic scenes; ruined homes, piles of debris, and the mud.
Your senses are overwhelmed by the sights and, yes, the smells, for there is nothing like the odor receding water leaves behind.
No question, the pictures are powerful.
But news stories are really about people, not events or things.
It's not until you start talking with those people who were in the path of the flood that you begin to comprehend what has happened.
Richard and Melissa Kennedy of the community of Horsepen told me how they struggled through the chest-high water that poured into their home to get to safety. They lost their house, but Richard Kennedy, a disabled coal miner, smiles and says it could have been worse--they still have their lives.
He put his faith in God.
Cindy Hurley of War Eagle breaks down as she tells me her story. Her health is not good; the cancer has spread, and Saturday night her home was heavily damaged by the flood. Hurley honestly does not know if she has the energy to go on.
Angela Cline is nine months pregnant and starting to dilate. She was trapped by a flooded Gilbert Creek and terrified she was not going to be able to make it out to a hospital in Huntington where she plans to have her baby.
The Blankenships headed to higher ground as Gilbert Creek washed out the small bridge in front of their home. Mr. Blankenship says the flood washed two feet of mud and debris under his double-wide, pushing up the floor.
He believes his home is ruined. A friend from his church has promised to rent he and his wife a small house.
House of Delegates member Harry Keith White was up to his elbows in mud. White's house escaped the flood, but he was helping his brother, Tom, scoop gallons of muck from his home along Gilbert Creek.
Victoria Surber of Horsepen fretted over the damage to her yard, but now she has seen how much destruction her friends and relatives have suffered and she feels guilty and wonders why her property was spared.
But there are other faces and voices, such as the Delton Beall, Director of Missions with the Southern Baptists who are here in full force. He says his people are ready with a hot meal or will stand in the parking lot with flood victims for an impromptu prayer if that's what's needed.
Bob Mullins of the Salvation Army always seems to have a smile on his face as he and others offer food and assistance at the Larry Joe Harless Community Center in Gilbert. Mullins tells me that given what people here have been through, he figures they can use a friendly face.
There is not just one story here--a flood story; What is happening in Southern West Virginia is told through hundreds of stories, like the ones I have mentioned here only briefly.
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