LAST UPDATED: 1:27 p.m.
Below is the latest update from the Virginia Department of Transportation regarding road conditions in Wythe County.

If you know of a road that is flooded and is not listed below, please contact the county’s emergency management department (276-223-4521), so that the county’s first responders will be able to make appropriate detours in the event of an emergency.

Information concerning road conditions throughout the county may be obtained from the following website:

http://www.511virginia.org/mobile/?menu_id=conditions

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Wythe County emergency officials are closely monitoring flash flooding throughout the county, as numerous roads have been closed Sunday night and early Monday morning.

According to E-911 dispatchers serving in the Wythe County Consolidated Dispatch Center, local residents have made numerous calls reporting flash flooding throughout the county.

In total, at least 15 roads in Wythe County have experienced varying degrees of roadway ponding or flooding, with at least three being officially closed by emergency officials.

Extreme weather reports include the following:
• FRANCIS MILL RD. (BRIDGE COVERED)
• CEDAR SPRINGS RD / DRY RD. (CREEK HAS FLOODED THE ROADWAY, CURRENTLY IMPASSABLE)
• STONEY FORK RD CLOSED DUE TO MASSIVE AMOUNTS OF WATER IN THE AREA, AND THE ROAD WASHING AWAY/40FT SINKHOLE IN THIS AREA.
• RIDGE AVE (CALLER STATED THE WATER IS UP TO THE DOOR OF HIS DODGE DUALLY TRUCK)
• ATKINS MILL RD @ MUSKRAT RD. (OFFICER ADVISED THIS AREA IS IMPASSABLE DUE TO HIGH AMOUNTS OF WATER IN THE AREA)
• BEREA RD (WATER COVERING ROADWAY, DRIVEWAY BRIDGE WASHED OUT ON PRIVATE PROPERTY.)
• CHURCH ST & BAUMGARDNER (IMPASSABLE ACCORDING TO CALLER.)

County officials are urging the general public to avoid travel if at all possible throughout the night, as emergency crews are working to assess the situation and offer assistance where necessary.

Sunday evening, the National Weather Service (NWS) in Blacksburg issued a flood warning for Wythe County, as well as all neighboring localities, following “heavy rainfall across the area.”

Though intense rain showers are expected to cease later into the night, forecasters are warning of additional showers and thunderstorms Monday after 11am.

Emergency officials are reminding motorists to remember the phrase, “Turn Around, Don’t Drown!” when they come to areas where water covers the roadway.

“The dangers of roadway flooding are heightened at night when it is more difficult to recognize the possible extent of the water,” said Wythe County public information officer Jeremy T.K. Farley.

“Should a motorist encounter a roadway that is flooded, we are asking them to turn around immediately and then, when it is safe, to notify 911,” added the county spokesperson.

The National Weather Service is advising residents to act quickly if flooding is observed.

Wythe County is reminding residents and visitors to call 911 should they experience flooding or any other emergency situation.

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This week, localities from across the nation are recognizing E-911 emergency dispatchers as part of a nationwide effort known as National Public Safety Telecommunicator’s Week.

Wythe County emergency officials say the initiative, which can be traced back to the early 1980s, allows the county an opportunity to highlight the critical role dispatchers play in emergency services.

“A call to 911 is a call for help – no one ever wakes up in the morning expecting to call 911 that day – and our staff answers dozens of these calls each day,” said James Copeland, who serves as the director of Emergency Communications for Wythe County.

Copeland added, “This week gives the public an opportunity to say ‘thank you’ for the wonderful job they do.”

The Wythe County emergency communications official is not alone in his praise for E-911 dispatchers, this past week, Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe joined governors from around the nation in formally recognizing public safety telecommunicators.

Addressing E-911 dispatchers, the governor stated, “Although Public Safety Telecommunicator Week is only for seven days, the praise and acknowledgement you will receive during this period is for the outstanding service you provide 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.”

In addition to receiving a certificate of recognition from Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe, thanking dispatchers for their hard work, county dispatchers have also been treated to complimentary lunches and doughnuts from businesses based in our region.

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Wythe County officials say the unemployment rate in their county has reached its lowest point in nearly a decade.

Earlier this month, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics announced that the county’s March 2015 unemployment rate had fallen to 5.2% — a 6.8-point drop from February 2010’s record high of 12.0%.

The county’s latest unemployment figures are lower than all of the neighboring localities surrounding it, including the counties of Bland, Pulaski, Smyth, Carroll and Grayson.

In addition to boasting of the lowest unemployment rate among its neighbors, the county’s jobless rate is also the second lowest in all of Southwest Virginia, falling just short of Montgomery County, home of Virginia Tech.

The county’s economic development officials credit the downward trend in jobless claims to the proactive effort local leaders have made over the past decade in making the county as job-friendly as possible.

East Wytheville’s Board of Supervisors representative Steve Willis, who also serves as Vice President of Operations for Camrett Logistics, says his company has hired 15 new workers since the first of the year.

“The economy is picking up across the nation and Wythe County has the groundwork already in place to incentivize business owners to put people back to work,” stated Willis.

Much of that groundwork is a result of the county’s relationship with the Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development, which recently approved Wythe County’s request to renew and expand the county’s enterprise zones – Virginia Enterprise Zones allow partnership opportunities between state and local governments that encourage job creation and private investment through special incentives and grants for businesses wishing to expand their operation in the Commonwealth.

Joe Hale, who serves as chairperson for the county’s Economic Development Committee, believes that not only is the county’s fresh economic data a testimony to the job-friendly policies of the county, but can also be attributed to the massive infrastructure projects the county has spearheaded over the past two decades.

April’s good economic news comes on the heels of a December 2014 announcement that Coperion Corporation, in collaboration with a local real estate developer, will invest a total of more than $3 million to expand its manufacturing operation in Fairview Industrial Park, located in Wythe County.

Work has already commenced at the site and when finished, the project is estimated to create 22 additional jobs for the community.

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WYTHEVILLE, Va. – In the fall of last year, the Wythe County Board of Supervisors voted to sell-by-auction several surplus properties owned by the county. County officials say auctioning these tracts will allow local residents an equal opportunity to purchase land at a fair-market price.

Another benefit of liquidating surplus county property, according to local officials, will be the additional revenues the sales will bring to the county’s general fund – first through the sale of the properties and then via real estate taxes.

“Anytime you can reintroduce parcels of land back onto the real estate tax rolls, the general public sees a benefit,” said Wythe County Public Information Officer Jeremy T.K. Farley.

Farley added, “These are tracts that the county government no longer has a use for and it’s time to allow individuals in the private-sector to develop these properties.”

The absolute auction will be managed by the Stanley King Land Auction Company and will be held on Saturday, April 11, 2015.

The first set of auctions will begin at 10 a.m. in Speedwell under a tent at the Speedwell Field, with the sale of the Old Speedwell Fire Department Building. The building (tax no. 81A-2-36A/37A) is a 2-story, 30′ x 60′ cinderblock structure which property appraisers say would make an “ideal business location for a garage.”

Additional property to be sold in Speedwell is the Speedwell Field, approximately 4.36 acres of level bottom land (tax no. 81-3-11).

Auctioneers will then move to Ivanhoe, where several properties are slated for sale beginning at 1 p.m. under a tent at 151 Carbide Lane.
In Ivanhoe, the county will be selling Granite Road Tank and Well Lot, approximately 1.5 acres – Nice building location. (tax no. 73-34); 151 Carbide Lane, approximately 2.9 acres (tax no. 87-9B) lies within sight of the New River Trail; Approximately 72 acres between Route 94 and Rakes Town Road, Ivanhoe — to be subdivided into approximately 8 tracts joining Route 94, (tax no. 87-9/9H/9I) (Tracts ranging from 5 to 21 acres) public water available.

Individuals wishing to participate in the auction should be aware of the auction terms: 10% nonrefundable deposit day of sale – balance not to exceed 30 days.

Those desiring additional information pertaining to the auction or the properties scheduled to be sold are encouraged to contact the Stanley King Land Auction Company.

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