Associated Press Published

West Virginia Town's Flood-Control Channels Being Restored

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Cleanup work has started on flood-control channels in the West Virginia community of Rainelle, which was ravaged by flooding last June.

The West Virginia Conservation Agency says in a news release that the agency and its contractors are removing sediment from channel beds and clearing brush from the channel banks. The West Virginia National Guard will take the debris to another site for incineration.

The channels were built between 1959 and 1961 by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and have had little maintenance since.

Once restored, the channels will be better suited to handle floodwaters and divert them from homes and businesses

The work is expected to be completed by mid-June.