Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, June 30, 1995 TAG: 9506300088
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A-4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: MIKE HUDSON STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Red Cross volunteers in Buena Vista spent the day eye-balling damaged homes from the outside. They saw lots of sad scenes: homes twisted off their foundations and split in two ... homes with their roofs fallen in ... homes still surrounded by small lakes of muddy water.
Last week, flooding hit Buena Vista's north end. This week, it pummeled the southern end of town.
``So we've been hit double,'' said James Bradford, chairman of Buena Vista's American Red Cross chapter.
The Red Cross helped 20 people forced out of their homes by flooding last week; this week, the figure has reached 50. Most stayed with friends or family; some stayed in hotels that provided free rooms to flood victims.
Downtown was mostly spared, and the damage was far less than what the city suffered in the historic floods of 1969 and 1985. But Wednesday's flood was still serious. According to the Red Cross' preliminary figures, the rushing waters destroyed eight houses and caused major damage to 17 homes and minor damage to 108 more.
Thursday afternoon, City Hall was closed down. The power was cut off because of water in the basement as high as four feet. However, most had been pumped out by mid-afternoon.
The Red Cross will begin going house-to-house today to assess the damage and decide how much relief money residents will get to repair homes and replace soaked rugs and ruined appliances.
The Buena Vista chapter has no paid staff. ``We've probably had up to 50 volunteers,'' Bradford said. ``We have had just so many people who want to help, I can't count them all.''
He said, though, more volunteers and cash contributions are needed.
by CNB