Flash Flood — Buchanan, Virginia

2022-07-12 · near Slate, Buchanan, Virginia

Event narrative

Significant damage occurred within the northern portions of Buchanan County. Between 100 to 125 structures observed structural damage with over 2,000 power outages within the communities. For 24 hours after the event, 40 stranded residents were unaccounted for due to loss of cell service and obstructed roadways due to the high water. One person was injured due to the inundation of flood waters.

Wider weather episode

Heavy rain that began on the evening of July 12th fell through the overnight hours in the Whitewood area of Buchanan County. This resulted in significant flash flooding damage across the northern portions of the county, impacting numerous roadways and structures. Over a hundred structures were damaged and thousands were without power.

The Governor of Virginia declared a state of emergency on the next day as recovery efforts took place. The clean up process continued for weeks after the flash flooding event. Local emergency management reported that roughly ten miles worth of the county had received significant damage.

View location on OpenStreetMap → (37.3307, -81.9536)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1039781. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.