BECKLEY, W.Va. — Unlike most natural disasters West Virginia’s Natural Resources Police had plenty of time to plan and react to the most recent high water event in southern West Virginia.
“We knew we were going to get flooded somewhere, but we didn’t know exactly where. But we were prepared enough that when I left for work on Saturday morning I had a trailer hooked up to my vehicle with a boat knowing we would be deployed somewhere,” said Sgt. Dennis Feazell of the West Virginia Natural Resources Police.
All DNR law enforcement members are specifically trained in swift water rescue to some degree as part of their day to day duties.
A man and his dog are successfully pulled out of harm’s way by Natural Resources Police Officers as flooding raged through the West Virginia coalfields PHOTO: NRPO Association
“We regulate the commercial whitewater industry, so we’ve always had a swiftwater rescue team. But with the rise in non-motorized watercraft like kayaks, we made a decision a couple of years ago to train all of our guys in swiftwater rescue and that keeps the public safe,” Feazell said.
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The training paid of when the rainfall started. Feazell was working in the area of Mercer County around Oakvale and Spanishburg initially.
“The calls started rolling in and we worked all over Mercer County on the first night. We were hearing that McDowell County was getting hammered, but there was just no way to get in there to see if we could help anybody. That was a rough situation,” Feazell said.
Instead by Monday he was redirected to work on Marrowbone Creek in Mingo County.
“In my experience in the first 24 hours we were part of pulling out and rescuing 25 to 30 people just in my little section,” he explained.
Initially those they were helping were in immediate danger. Some were stranded in their vehicles as the water swept them away. Others were in houses where the water was rising and there was no way out.
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“Those first eight hours a lot of them were in peril,” said Feazell. “We rescued one man in Oakvale from the back of his truck and it washed away. There were others in Spanishburg where I was working whose homes were filled up with water.”
Overall, Governor Patrick Morrisey noted in Friday’s media briefing first responders, which included Natural Resources Police, pulled more than 130 people out of harms way in which their homes or vehicles had become surrounded by water.
Photo: Dave Casebolt, left, signed an agreement Tuesday with West Virginia American Water Company President Scott Wyman (City of Nitro)
NITRO, W.Va. — It’s a done deal.
Nitro Mayor Dave Casebolt signed an agreement Tuesday with West Virginia American Water Company President Scott Wyman completing the sale of the Nitro Regional Wastewater Utility including the sewer plant for $20 million.
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The water utility will now own and operate the city’s water and wastewater systems. The state Public Service Commission recently approved the deal.
Casebolt said it’s good to get the long-talked-about agreement signed. He said the city can’t afford to make the improvements required at the sewer plant.
“We’re looking at needing between 40 and 50 million dollars of upgrades to our system and expecting our four-thousand customer base to try to offset those costs is not even practical,” Casebolt said.
Casebolt said sewer bills are going to go up but he said they were going to go up regardless. He said the city was facing increasing rates by as much as 50 percent.
West Virgina American is planning $42 million in upgrades to the sewer system over the next five years, Casebolt said.
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“It’s a much-need investment and actually allow the system to handle rainwater much better where it’s not backing up into people’s homes,” Casebolt said.
The results are in for the West Virginia Lottery’s draw games on Monday, March 2, 2026.
Here’s a look at winning numbers for each game on March 2.
Winning Powerball numbers from March 2 drawing
02-17-18-38-62, Powerball: 20, Power Play: 2
Check Powerball payouts and previous drawings here.
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Winning Lotto America numbers from March 2 drawing
03-08-17-24-34, Star Ball: 06, ASB: 02
Check Lotto America payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Daily 3 numbers from March 2 drawing
7-4-8
Check Daily 3 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Daily 4 numbers from March 2 drawing
1-1-9-6
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Check Daily 4 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Cash 25 numbers from March 2 drawing
02-03-05-07-19-22
Check Cash 25 payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
When are the West Virginia Lottery drawings held?
Powerball: 11 p.m. ET on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
Mega Millions: 10:59 p.m. ET Tuesday and Friday.
Lotto America: 10:15 p.m. ET on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
Daily 3, 4: 6:59 p.m. ET Monday through Saturday.
Cash 25: 6:59 p.m. ET Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday.
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a USA Today editor. You can send feedback using this form.
Another successful weekend for the West Virginia Mountaineers results in another slight bump up in the top 25 rankings. WVU took two of three from Kennesaw State on the road, allowing them to slide up to No. 23 in D1Baseball’s new batch of rankings.
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D1Baseball’s Top 25 for Week 3
1. UCLA 2. LSU 3. Texas 4. Mississippi State 5. Georgia Tech 6. Arkansas 7. Auburn 8. North Carolina 9. Florida 10. Southern Miss 11. Georgia 12. Oklahoma 13. NC State 14. Clemson 15. Wake Forest 16. Coastal Carolina 17. TCU 18. Oregon State 19. Tennessee 20. Florida State 21. Kentucky 22. Texas A&M 23. West Virginia 24. Miami 25. UTSA
Missed opportunity
West Virginia had a 6-0 lead in game three of its series against Kennesaw State, looking well on their way to a clean three-game sweep of the Owls.
Unfortunately for Steve Sabins, the bullpen imploded following another strong five-inning outing from the big lefty Maxx Yehl. Bryson Thacker, Carson Estridge, and David Perez combined to give up four runs on five hits over the final three innings, allowing the Owls to steal Sunday’s game.
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The loss frustrated West Virginia fans and rightfully so, but there’s no need to panic. The name of the game is to continue winning the series. You do that, you’ll find yourself in a position to make the NCAA Tournament and earn a high seed. Obviously, you don’t want to blow the opportunity of a sweep, especially when you’re up 6-0, but it’s not a loss that is going to ruin their resume. Losing the series, on the other hand, would have.
What’s next for the Mountaineers?
No single mid-week game this week for West Virginia. Instead, they’ll play a quick two-game series against Radford at home beginning Tuesday. They’ll get one day of rest before opening up a three-game series at home against Columbia, which will be the final series of non-conference play. WVU will have a single mid-week game against Maryland on Tuesday, March 10th, before beginning Big 12 action on the road against Baylor.
