News Article

Lt. Governor: "It could take weeks for Virginia to recover"

Monday, August 29, 2011
Tom Dempsey
WHSV 3

Lieutenant Governor Bill Bolling was in the Valley on Monday, and said it could take weeks to get life back to normal for some parts of Virginia in the wake of Hurricane Irene.

As recovery begins, there could be a big cost.

Damage from Hurricane Irene is expected to be around $7 billion along the east coast, and Bolling said Virginia will be paying a share.

He said the goal for Monday was restoring power for almost 1 million people.

After the storm struck over the weekend, Bolling said the response from emergency squads was "fantastic" in the state.

However, he said recovery was far from over.

According to the Lt. Gov., it could take weeks before all the trees are cleared, homes are repaired, and power lines are back up.

Despite the damage, he said things could have been much worse.

Bolling said evacuations helped save lives and the state's infrastructure held up well.

As he explained, the state is recovering, but it could take time.

"Folks are just going to have to be patient. We're not going to get everything back to normal tomorrow, but we are as quickly as we can," he said. "As tough as this was, I think we can all breathe a sigh of relief. It could have been much worse were it not the positive way in which citizens and government agencies responded."

Bolling added that there's more than 90 days left in hurricane season, so it's important for the state to continue to be ready in case another hurricane heads towards Virginia.

For additional information contact Ibbie Hedrick at 804-225-2487 or ibbie.hedrick@ltgov.virginia.gov.