Perkins Field, Bridgeport High School’s athletic complex, is underwater in April — a result of flooding of the Ohio River and its tributaries. T-L File Photo

HEAVY RAIN in early April caused millions of dollars in damages across Eastern Ohio and brought flooding that threatened to breach a facility where hazardous, radioactive waste was stored in Martins Ferry.

Belmont, Monroe and Jefferson are among eight counties that Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine believed should qualify for federal funding in the wake of the storms. He sent a letter requesting a presidential disaster declaration from President Joe Biden to support counties impacted by severe storms, flooding and tornadoes in early April. DeWine notes in a news release that he made the request despite the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s assertion that damage does not reach the threshold for federal assistance.

The severe weather occurred April 1-4, causing “significant damage to critical public infrastructure in Belmont, Monroe, Jefferson, Guernsey, Noble, Washington, Morgan, and Meigs counties,” according to DeWine.

DeWine’s letter to the White House states that local officials and the Ohio EMA calculated total damage of $33.8 million, well above the $21.7 million federal threshold for public disaster assistance in Ohio. FEMA’s damage estimate was $17.4 million, which is $4.3 million under the federal threshold for public aid.

“Frankly, we think FEMA’s estimate is incorrect,” DeWine wrote. “The federal government’s reliance on Google Earth and its failure to give local officials the opportunity to provide additional information to support its estimate is concerning. These eight Appalachian counties cannot afford to fix the tremendous amount of infrastructure damage on their own, and I believe it’s the President’s duty to step in and help.”

That presidential declaration never came.

More than 4 inches of rain fell across the region over the course of four days, causing street flooding and slips as early as April 1. As the week progressed, streams overflowed their banks and, by April 4, the Ohio River flooded. It crested at more than 41 feet at Wheeling, 5 feet above flood stage.

The flood water covered streets and athletic fields and infiltrated homes and businesses. At one point, the Ohio River flooding threatened to enter the Austin Master Services frack waste processing facility at Martins Ferry, where hazardous and radioactive materials could have leached into the water before it receded.

Businesses along portions of National Road in Bridgeport were forced to close, and the basement of the Brookside firehouse had to be emptied ahead of the coming flood. At higher elevations, the saturated soil caused massive slips that covered roads or pulled them apart.

Belmont County Emergency Management Director Dave Ivan told Belmont County Commissioners in late April that the cumulative damage within the county from both storms totaled $15.7 million between water damage and washed-out roads.

“I was somewhat shocked with the number that came in from the PDA,” Ivan said.

Rains pushed the Ohio River to a crest of 41.49 feet in Wheeling on April 5, the 26th highest crest in recorded history. And as residents were in the process of cleaning up from that flood, another set of storms sent the river climbing again. On April 13, the Ohio River crested in Wheeling at 37.8 feet, the 37th highest recorded crest.

During both flooding events, Wheeling Island residents took much of the damage. The river came over its banks both times, flooding basements and garages and sending Island residents scrambling to save items from extensive damage.

Also in West Virginia, a landslide covered most of W.Va. 2 at Gumby’s between downtown Wheeling and Warwood. Another slide destroyed a large chunk of Mt. Zion Cemetery in Mozart, toppling nearly 200 tombstones. The cemetery has received some help from the state in rebuilding, getting $2 million in funds to get the job done.

Yet another landslide not only blocked Park View Road in the Springdale area, but also destroyed a home that was in its path. Residents and pets made it out of the home safely, but the home was rendered uninhabitable and the road was impassible.

The city of Wheeling’s wastewater treatment plant will incur about $4 million in repairs from the floods.