Senator from West Virginia remembers deadly floods, honors victims and rescuers

The Senator from West Virginia addressed colleagues on June 23 to mark the 10th anniversary of a catastrophic flood that killed 23 people across the state, recounting the immediate rescue efforts, the losses suffered by families and the community response that followed.

The senator said parts of the state received "11 inches of rain" in a short period and described inspecting a footbridge built at The Greenbrier for a PGA Tour event that was nearly overtopped by rising water: "that $7,000 that I spent right there for that is just going to go ship and it's just going to zip right away." He said he later drove through rushing mud and water, got a flat tire and realized the scale of the disaster as ‘‘the water was almost mountain to mountain.’’

He recounted search-and-recovery work and named rescuers and victims. "We hunted bodies all over the place," the senator said, noting crews found some bodies on golf courses. He praised Ashley Caddle, describing her as "a young lady who absolutely served in our US Army" who waded into a pond to pull a body out, and he commended local helpers such as Andrew Sullivan and the families who "had the courage to stay together." He described a separate scene in which a homeowner’s attic filled with gas and the house later exploded, killing the occupant days after suffering severe burns.

The senator praised The Greenbrier for opening to people displaced by the flood, saying 700 people walked in with "no shoes on" and that hotel staff and volunteers provided shelter, food and services — even swimming lessons for children. He thanked first responders and the National Guard for wading through mud during extended recovery operations.

The senator described suspending his campaign work to help search for a missing 14-year-old, Michaela Phillips, saying he personally participated in searches for six weeks until her body was recovered six miles downstream. He described the emotional toll on families who lost homes and possessions buried in mud and then hauled to piles for removal by National Guard end loaders and dump trucks.

Closing his remarks, the senator urged colleagues to pause in remembrance: "say a little prayer at some point in time today for all those great people of West Virginia," he said, noting the 23 people who died statewide and expressing gratitude to those who helped the state rebuild. He yielded his time at the end of the statement.

The remarks were a personal memorial and a public acknowledgment of the scale of loss and recovery the senator said West Virginia endured after the flood.