VDEM reports no major incidents as rain fell across the Commonwealth on Friday

RICHMOND, Va. (WWBT) - As heavy rain fell and winds whipped around parts of the Commonwealth, the Virginia Department of Emergency Management (VDEM) reported no significant incidents from the remnants of Hurricane Ian on Friday.

Jason Elmore, with VDEM, said areas they were watching closely included Hampton Roads due to flooding and a tornado watch in effect for most of the night.

“We’ve started to see rain across a wide range area of the Commonwealth,” Elmore said. “So we’re making sure we’re not having any flash flood or anything like that.”

While conditions should ease by Saturday morning, for the following several days, Virginia’s National Guard members will be deployed in Abingdon, Roanoke, Virginia Beach, and Richmond to help clear debris and provide assistance.

“They will be in the emergency operation center as well over the weekend,” Elmore said. “So that way, we don’t have any time issues, and as soon as we get information about their needs, we can pass that information directly along to them and get them to where they need to be.”

Parts of the Northern Neck, like Lancaster County, also saw high winds that caused several power outages.

Early Friday evening, more than 1,700 Northern Neck Electric Cooperative members were without power, but a majority had their lights turned back on.

Elmore stressed that we expect more rain overnight to ensure you have a plan in place in case of a flood.

“If you know that you’re in an area that may typically flood, you want to make sure you make it to higher ground,” Elmore said. “Especially if the water starts to come up, you want to make sure you can make it to that higher elevation if at all possible.”

Friday night, the City of Richmond opened up an inclement weather shelter at the Linwood Robinson Center until 9 a.m. on Saturday.

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