Gov. Glenn Youngkin speaks in the Patrick Henry Building Tuesday. (Charlie Paullin/Virginia Mercury)
Recovery efforts in Southwest Virginia following Hurricane Helene remain a priority for Gov. Glenn Youngkin as government resources continue to aid states affected by the storm’s devastation, including North Carolina, and soon Florida, where an extremely dangerous category 5 hurricane is predicted to make landfall Wednesday night.
Speaking to reporters in Richmond on Tuesday, Youngkin highlighted the progress made in restoring services in Virginia’s hardest-hit areas, especially in the mountainous regions in the western part of the commonwealth. He noted that power had been restored to all but less than 200 customers in remote areas, with full service expected soon.
Additionally, all cell phone towers in the region have been repaired, ensuring communication abilities are back online.
Boil water advisories for drinking water are down from 35 systems to 19 in the areas hardest hit by Helene, as water can still be used for other purposes. Test kits for well users are available at a disaster recovery center, including one at the Damascus Shopping Mall in Washington County.
Two primary roads and 16 secondary roads remain impassable, Youngkin said.
State officials and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers are concerned about debris and chemicals in Claytor Lake in Pulaski County, and South Holston Lake in Washington County, as the bodies of water are used for hydroelectric power generation.
“I believe this will be a 10 to 12-day period of just assessing and getting cleanup personnel on site,” Youngkin said.
Medical crews remain in the area, but Virginia does “not have a shortage,” of fluid IV supplies, Youngkin said. Health systems, however, are still determining if elective procedures can be delayed.
The Virginia Employment Commission is helping with job losses, Youngkin added, and the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services is working with the United States Department of Agriculture to assist with the potential “hundreds of millions of dollars of lost income from our agricultural community.”
Individual assistance has been expanded to the counties of Montgomery and Pulaski, as public assistance for local governments, has been expanded to Lee County. Most of those who have sought assistance have primarily used the FEMA app, Youngkin said.
And less than two weeks after Helene hit the United States Southeast, claiming the lives of two in Virginia and over 227 people around the region, Hurricane Milton is forecast to slam into the western coast of Florida.
Milton is expected to head across the state into the Atlantic Ocean without an impact to Virginia, unless there’s an unexpected turn, which Youngkin said on Tuesday gave him confidence to deploy search and rescue and emergency management teams to support North Carolina. a He also sent the Helicopter Aquatic Rescue Team, a partnership with Virginia National Guard and Chesterfield County firefighter and EMS crews, to Florida in preparation for Milton’s arrival.
When asked by the Virginia Mercury about protections for Southwest Virginia in the event of future flood events since the hurricane season lasts until Nov. 30, Youngkin said that “protections are hard.”
“As much as we’d like to build a giant wall, in addition to the wall we should build at the southern border, we have to be prepared,” Youngkin said, renewing his request from last week to not get “distracted” by discussions about climate change.
“We have great capabilities in order to make sure that loss of life is protected against, but, on top of that, we also know that our response capabilities are extraordinary as well,” Youngkin said.
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