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By MARTHA BRYSON HODEL
CEREDO, W.Va. (AP) - Widespread flooding caused by the remains of Hurricane Ivan could be one of the most expensive disasters in West Virginia's history because it struck densely populated urban areas, Gov. Bob Wise said Tuesday.
Wise did not have damage figures but said 10,000 to 12,000 families in 20 counties were affected by flooding.
Damage to schools alone was estimated at $2 million, the state Department of Education has said.
''The damage is as bad as any I've seen as governor and in some cases worse,'' Wise said in Wheeling, one of the stops on the governor's helicopter tour of flood-ravaged areas.
At least 100 homes in Wheeling and other areas of Ohio County were destroyed and another 159 were damaged, the state Office of Emergency Services has said.
Wise also toured Williamstown and Vienna, where about 400 homes were damaged by flooding.
President Bush on Monday issued a federal disaster declaration for eight counties: Brooke, Hancock, Marshall, Ohio, Pleasants, Tyler, Wetzel, and Wirt counties. The declaration makes residents in the affected counties eligible for individual assistance grants to pay flood-related expenses.
Wise said other counties may be added to the declaration this week.
Ivan's remains dumped up to 5 inches of rain in parts of the state on Friday. Statewide, flooding destroyed at least 289 homes and 31 businesses. Floodwaters receded Tuesday as the crest of the rain-swollen Ohio River moved past the state, the OES said.
''The last area that was under water was in Wayne County,'' said Clay Carney, an OES spokesman.
Across Wayne County, farmers' hayfields and cattle pastures were submerged. About two dozen homes also were damaged, mostly by backwater from tributaries of the Ohio River and overwhelmed storm sewers, said Bill Willis with the county's Office of Emergency Services.
Willis spent Tuesday morning documenting damage in the hope of including Wayne County in the disaster declaration. He said the county has no way to help residents recover and rebuild.
''The county just doesn't have the resources,'' said Willis.
''We're hoping we'll reach the dollar amount of damages we need to get federal assistance.''
Carney said there were still scattered power outages in the state but no major problems.
The Division of Highways reported several highways remained closed Tuesday, including state Route 2 south of Wellsburg. A landslide had both lanes blocked, said spokeswoman Carol Melling.
Secondary roads in Brooke, Hancock, Jackson, Marshall, Mason, Morgan, Ohio and Wood were closed due to flood damage, according to the DOH's Web site. As water receded, more roads were reopened, Melling said.
''It's hard keeping up with it,'' she said.
Impassable roads prompted school closings Tuesday in Brooke, Marshall and Ohio Counties. Wetzel County schools were on a two-hour delay and three schools there were closed Tuesday due to flood damage.
Wise said 850 National Guardsmen have been activated and he plans to call up another 500. Most of those will have to come from other states because a large number of West Virginia's Guardsmen have been activated to support U.S. troops in Iraq.
The state also is leasing equipment for cleanup because a lot of the Guard's equipment also was shipped to support troops in Iraq. A National Guard unit from Ashland, Ky., was expected to arrive in West Virginia on Tuesday night.
One death was blamed on Ivan's wake and one person was missing. State Police pulled the body of a Lincoln County man from a flooded creek on Saturday. Troopers searched without success on Tuesday for Joel Mitchell Robinson, 45, whose empty truck was found Saturday night in Fish Creek near his home in Marshall County. The search was to resume Wednesday.
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