CHARLESTON, W.Va. – More heavy rain was forecast Wednesday as residents of the central Appalachians (search) cleared mud and debris caused by flash floods (search).
Gov. Bob Wise (search) toured flood-damaged areas in southern West Virginia and said he planned to present a request for federal disaster aid to President Bush on Thursday.
A 37-year-old man died Wednesday while wading in a creek in West Virginia. Over the past week, at least six other deaths have been blamed on the floods: a 10-year-old boy in West Virginia; a 6-year-old girl in Kentucky; a cave explorer in Kentucky, and three members of one family in North Carolina. Rain delayed the search Wednesday for the body of an 8-year-old boy who was in the same car as the three North Carolina victims.
Several counties in southern West Virginia were under a flood watch until Thursday.
Parts of Georgia got heavy rain for the second night in a row, with more than 2 inches in some areas, prompting the evacuation early Wednesday of 22 people in the town of LaGrange.
An additional 2 inches of rain was possible in western Georgia and the Atlanta area, the weather service said.
"Heavy rainfall from the past few days has made for very wet soils and persistent runoff into creeks and streams," the weather service said. "Additional heavy rainfall will only aggravate the situation today."
In West Virginia, officials estimated nearly 200 houses were destroyed or heavily damaged by flooding Monday and on June 11 in and around Charleston. More than 60 homes were ruined or severely damaged in nearby Boone County, where as much as 5 inches of rain fell Monday.
Flood damage to West Virginia highways was estimated at $2.5 million to $3 million, said Randy Epperly, deputy state highway engineer for the state Division of Highways.
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