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Residents across Southwest Virginia begin long process of recovery after Helene

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Residents across Southwest Virginia begin long process of recovery after Helene


Emergency officials are still assessing the full extent of the damage to southwest Virginia from tropical storm Helene. Many communities are without water and power, and residents evacuated across seven counties.

83-year-old Elizabeth King has lived along the New River in Wythe County most of her life, one of the areas most impacted by last week’s flooding.

Her husband is buried in a water-proof casket beside the home they shared on the bank of the river for decades. She says she didn’t want to leave, but her daughters made her.

She sits on her daughter Kathy’s couch, holding her small brown dog, Bandit, with tears in her eyes.

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“Everything’s gone,” King said.

“What I tell you? It’s just memories,” said her daughter Kathy King. “Our main concern was you.”

“I know,” said King, nodding.

A few miles away, her home stands surrounded by mud. High water pushed her wooden front porch away from the house. A peach tree her husband planted is broken. Inside the house, everything is damaged.

Her husband’s grave, however, is still intact, and her daughter Kathy says she’s grateful the water didn’t take him away. Plastic flowers still stick in the mud surrounding his grave.

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The grave where King’s husband is buried at the home they shared for decades.

“We promised our daddy on his dying bed we’d take care of her, and that’s what we intend to do,” King said.

“Yes. That was his biggest fear,” said her sister, Susan Lane.

“Her being took care of,” King said.

“Them two were like two peas in a pod,” Lane said.

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They’re working to find out if their mother’s home insurance will help her rebuild. For now, she is staying with them.

Downriver a few miles in Pulaski County, dozens of people are starting the long process of clearing out mud and trash from their homes.

Many here in the community of Allisonia couldn’t drive down this road to their homes until Sunday, when the water began to recede.

Motorcycles, boats, clothes, even a mobile home were scattered in the road and yards when the water went down.

A friend hugs Brian Sale, as they stand in muck boots, overlooking the damage to Sale’s home.

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Friends and family have come out to help Sale and his wife clean.

“I think I’m still in shock,” Sale said. “We watched all our stuff wash out of the house.” He added that he’s grateful that this community didn’t lose any lives, like in other areas further south.

“This is material stuff. It can be fixed,” Sale said.

A church sign that fell during the flood, in Allisonia

A church sign that fell during the flood, in Allisonia

Many of the people who were displaced have been staying these past few days with friends and family. Others have been sleeping wherever they can find a place to rest.

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“A couple out of one of the houses, they actually slept in their van over here outside the fire department a couple of nights,” said Jamie Arnold, the volunteer fire chief in the Allisonia community.

Some temporary shelters have been set up in communities across southwest Virginia.

Local organizations are setting up donation centers to collect for flood victims here in the Commonwealth, and further south in the Carolinas. One drop off location is in Dublin, at the Pulaski County Free Store, where Heather Short is a volunteer.

“I know I’ve heard multiple times, people have just lost everything. We currently are accepting things like blankets, tents, sleeping bags, tarps,” Short said.

Water is another need across all of the impacted communities throughout the southeast.

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Volunteers are also collecting donations in Giles County at the Newport Community Center and in Blacksburg.

State officials are still assessing the damage and trying to determine how many people in Virginia are in need of housing, as a result of last week’s storms.

This report, provided by Virginia Public Radio, was made possible with support from the Virginia Education Association.





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Man shot, killed by Virginia trooper ID’d after crash ends in deadly stabbing attack

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Man shot, killed by Virginia trooper ID’d after crash ends in deadly stabbing attack


Virginia State Police have identified the man who was shot and killed by a trooper after a crash ended in a stabbing attack on Interstate 495 Sunday afternoon.

Jared Llamado, 32, of McLean, died at the hospital on Sunday after he was shot.

RELATED | 2 dead, dog killed after stabbing spree, trooper shooting on I-495 in Fairfax County

Investigators said Llamado was confronted by the trooper who opened fire around 1:17 p.m. The trooper was responding to a report of a road rage incident and found Llamado with a knife, according to a news release.

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Four stabbing victims, all women, were also found at the scene, along with a dog that was also stabbed.

Michelle Adams, 39, died from her injuries. The dog also did not survive. The three other women were all taken to the hospital with serious injuries, according to VSP. 7News is not identifying the surviving victims.

Investigators said the stabbings stemmed from a crash in the southbound lanes of I-495.

The trooper who opened fire was not hurt and is on leave pending the outcome of the investigation into the use of force.

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Investigators said they do not believe the attack is connected to terrorism.



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Two dead after I-495 road rage incident leads to stabbing, Virginia State Police shooting – WTOP News

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Two dead after I-495 road rage incident leads to stabbing, Virginia State Police shooting – WTOP News


A road rage incident led to a shooting involving the Virginia State Police on Sunday on Interstate 495. Four individuals were also stabbed.

Two people are dead Sunday in Annandale, Virginia, after a road rage incident led to a shooting involving Virginia State Police on Interstate 495.

A release issued by the Virginia State Police said a trooper fatally shot a man after responding to a report of a road rage incident on the southbound lanes of I-495 just before 1:30 p.m. at exit 52, near the Little River Turnpike.

The man, transferred to a hospital with serious injuries, has been pronounced dead. VSP said the trooper shot in self-defense after the man confronted him with a knife.

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The trooper did not suffer any injuries during the altercation.

Officials found four stabbing victims at the scene, but only identified a 39-year-old woman and a dog. Both the woman and the dog died.

Early findings suggest the stabbings took place after a crash on the Capital Beltway. The crash remains under investigation.

The VSP’s release comes after the main lanes of the Capital Beltway Outer Loop, before Little River Turnpike, were closed to traffic for several hours, only recently opening the express lanes. Main lanes between Arlington Boulevard and the Little River Turnpike remain closed.

Stay with WTOP for the latest developments.

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© 2026 WTOP. All Rights Reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area.



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Virginia Huffman Obituary February 27, 2026 – Ott & Lee Funeral Homes

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Virginia Huffman Obituary February 27, 2026 – Ott & Lee Funeral Homes


Mary “Virginia” Huffman, 82, of Pelahatchie, Mississippi, passed away on February 27, 2026.

Born on February 28, 1943, in Morton, Mississippi, she was the daughter of Carl and Nannie Mae Bradshaw. She married the love of her life, Jimmy Lavell Huffman, on June 14, 1963, and together they built a life rooted in faith, family, and hard work. Virginia devoted nearly 50 years to teaching high school math, beginning at Morton High School and later serving at East Rankin Academy. Generations of students were shaped by her steady guidance, high expectations, and deep belief in their potential. Many would say they entered college prepared because they had learned from “Mrs. Huffman.” Her students knew the famous “Mrs. Huffman look,” but no one understood it quite like her children and grandchildren. To many, she was more than a teacher—she was a mentor, encourager, and second mother.

A faithful member of Cross Roads Baptist Church, Virginia was a true matriarch and prayer warrior whose life was anchored in her love for the Lord. She woke each morning to study the Word of God and carried that faith into every conversation, classroom, and season of life. She played piano and organ, sang in the choir, and on Sunday mornings could often be found at home practicing the piano before church—something her family dearly loved listening to. She served her church and community with quiet devotion. Whether tutoring students during the summer, helping families in need, or visiting church members, she consistently lived out a servant’s heart.

She loved farm life—raising chickens and cows, cutting hay, tending her flower beds, and cooking for the people she loved. She was especially known for her strawberry pies, egg custard, and caramel cake (see Cheryl Moore for the recipe). She faithfully attended her grandchildren’s sporting events and found her greatest joy in cheering on her family. She loved deeply and wholeheartedly, treating not only her own children and grandchildren as treasures, but embracing many others in her community as if they were her own.

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She is survived by her husband, Jimmy Lavell Huffman; her children, Connie Goodman (Mike), Karen Jones, and Jade Huffman; her grandchildren, Christin (Colby) (Candace), Christopher (Victoria), Dillon, Marley, Halle (Elijah), Kyla Kate, and Eli; her great-grandchildren, Autumn, Titus, Sophia, Liam, Scarlett, Luke, and Ava; and her siblings, Paul (Joyce) and Delilah.

She was preceded in death by her parents, Carl and Nannie Mae Bradshaw; her in-laws, Clyde Sr. and Zora Huffman; her son, Scot Huffman; and her sisters, May Erving and Maxine Strong.

Virginia will be remembered as a woman of unwavering faith, steadfast strength, and extraordinary love. Her legacy lives on in the family she nurtured, the students she prepared, and the countless lives she covered in prayer.

Visitation will be held from 5:00 pm – until on Sunday, March 1, 2026 at Cross Roads Baptist Church in Pelahatchie and again on Monday, March 2, 2026 from 12 pm – 1 pm.  

Services will be held at 1pm Monday, March 2, 2026 at Cross Roads Baptist Church with burial in the church cemetery.  

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Bro. John Vaughn, Bro. Gary Morris and Bro. Steven Platt will officate the services.

Pallbearers will be Tim Wolverton, Colby Boyd, Christopher Wilson, Dillon Pettigrew, Eli Huffman and Elijah Moore.

Ott and Lee Funeral Home in Morton is honored to serve the Huffman family.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to the Cross Roads Baptist Church Building Fund.

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