Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin, is briefed by Jimmy Gianato, Director of Homeland Security at the National Guard Armory on Coonskin Drive before a teleconference with Liason Officers scattered thoughout storm affected areas of West Virginia. At left is West Virginia National Guard Adjutant General James A. Hoyer. (Craig Cunningham/Charleston Daily Mail)

By Dave Boucher
The Daily Mail

CHARLESTON, W.Va. — More than two-dozen members of the West Virginia National Guard stared at monitors and swilled coffee Wednesday morning as they helped coordinate storm relief efforts from the Joint Operations Center at the Coonskin Armory Complex in Charleston.

Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin came to the center to video teleconference briefings from emergency managers in counties hit hardest by the snowstorm brought to the state in large part by Hurricane Sandy. Thousands remained without power overnight, with river levels rising and roofs collapsing in parts of the state where it snowed in the neighborhood of 3 feet.

Adj. Gen. James Hoyer, the leader of the West Virginia National Guard, sat with Tomblin and state Homeland Security Advisor Jimmy Gianato during these briefings. Hoyer said there are currently 250 members of the National Guard deployed throughout the state, with authorization to increase that to 350 if the need arises.

Considering the damage and help West Virginians needed after the surprise June derecho, Tomlin said advanced warning of this snowstorm definitely helped emergency personnel get ready.

“I think it could have a whole lot worse,” Tomblin said, adding his thanks for local emergency responders and the National Guard.

“We did have enough time where we were able to pre-position assets across the state,” Tomblin said.

The governor, Hoyer and Gianato heard three briefings early Wednesday morning from emergency management personnel in the city of Martinsburg as well as Grant, Hardy and Preston counties. The most severe damage was reported from Grant and Preston counties; an emergency manager in Grant County said the Mt. Storm Power Station was completely offline. The plant can produce enough energy in one hour to run 160 homes for a year, according to the Dominion company’s website.

In Preston County about 78 percent of residents still did not have power Wednesday morning, an emergency management official said. Firefighters and other responders worked all night to try and clear roads of tree debris, but the manager said more trees were falling all the time.

Tomblin and Hoyer said downed trees were a problem across the state. There already are National Guard teams out cutting trees where they can, and FEMA logging teams have been requested.

The governor was slated to hear updates from Elkins, Buckhannon and Lewisburg at the Joint Operations Center. This afternoon he will tour damages in Raleigh, Fayette, Nicholas and some of the other areas most affected by the storm, said spokeswoman Amy Shuler Goodwin.