Second: I'm going to send you to WCHS News Website for all the updates, including where to send donations.
Now: I have a picture on my Facebook of a local landmark, called Long Point. It's about 500m upstream from Summersville Dam, in the middle of the lake. Normally, the top of the cliff at Long Point is usually 25m above the lake. The picture I posted shows the lake has risen by ~18m. The lake follows the original riverbed, so it's a twisty snake about 300m at the widest. One math genius has called it an excess of 2Million Cubic Meters, backed up behind that single dam.At least 20 people, including an eight-year-old boy and a toddler, have died in flooding in West Virginia, according to state officials.
Heavy storms and flooding have caused widespread damage throughout the state, said Governor Earl Ray Tomblin.
A state of emergency was declared in 44 of the state's 55 counties.
Rescue efforts were under way for about 500 people trapped in a shopping centre while officials continued to search for others stranded in devastated areas.
The flooding has destroyed more than 100 homes and knocked out power for thousands after a storm system dumped nine inches of rain on parts of the state.
The governor said 200 National Guard soldiers were carrying out search and rescue efforts as well as health and welfare checks in eight counties across the state.
A church pastor told the AP news agency an eight-year-old boy slipped, fell into a creek and was swept away.
The boy's mother attempted to save him but lost her grip on the child, according to Harry Croft, pastor at Marwin Church of the Nazarene at Wheeling.
The child's body was found about a half-mile from where the family lives.
The body of a four-year-old boy was also recovered a day after the child slipped into a creek swollen with flood waters.
Ravenswood Fire Department official Bob Bibbee said the toddler was with his grandfather when he fell into the water in Jackson County.
The grandfather jumped into the creek to try and save the boy, but was overcome by the rushing water.
Governor Tomblin called the flooding "among the worst in a century for some parts of the state".
And it's only one of several dams along the rivers leading through Southern WV. The scary part is there are hundreds of lesser dams, built over the decades by coal companies to hold their mine tailings. Some of these dams are at the head of hollers, above schools and houses. One of them already burst and left the town of Richwood underwater. I fear what will happen if others start to go.