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On
Thursday, Gov. Jim Justice and leaders with the Department of
Transportation held an event by the Kevin S. Rux Memorial Bridge in
Harrison County – which is currently undergoing
construction – to celebrate the amount of road work that has
been completed in West Virginia through Gov. Justice’s Roads To
Prosperity program. This Monday, Oct. 7, 2019, marked the two-year
anniversary of when West Virginians
went to the polls and voted, overwhelmingly, to pass the Governor’s
Roads To Prosperity bond program. In just 24 months since the
bond referendum passed, 541 projects – worth $385.1 million and
spanning 1,185 miles across all 55 counties – have been completed
through the program. [Watch Video] [More Photos]
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Throughout
the week, Gov. Justice visited students, teachers, and
administrators at three elementary schools across the state
to present awards recognizing each of them as being among
the top-performing schools in West Virginia on the statewide
Balanced Scorecard Accountability System – an assessment
that paints a picture of where schools are succeeding and
areas where they need to improve. The Governor's first stop of the
week was at Kenna Elementary School in Kanawha
County – the only school in the state that exceeded
standards in all five "Balanced Scorecard" categories
this year. [Watch Video] [More Photos]
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And
finally this week, Gov. Justice stopped by and congratulated
students from Pleasant Valley Elementary School in Marion County. [Watch Video] [More Photos]
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This past
weekend, 33 adventurous travelers boarded a bus in Washington, D.C.
for a weekend trip to a mystery location. It was all part of the
West Virginia Tourism Office's "Destination Unknown"
campaign to host a "blind vacation" in the Mountain
State. A little more than three hours after departing, the bus came
to a stop and the travelers stepped off to realize they had been transported
to West Virginia's Canaan Valley – and were treated to a vacation
that was truly Almost Heaven. [More Photos]
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On
Wednesday, Gov. Justice presented a $26,000 check to Oceana
Mayor Tom Evans and other local leaders, which will help fund the
completion of the new Wyoming County Veterans Memorial display that
is currently being built in town. When it’s completed, the
memorial will consist of black brick commemorative wall, which will
stand in honor of all veterans, no matter where they are from. The
final design also includes three uprights that will be adorned with
names of the Wyoming County veterans who died in combat. [Watch Video] [More Photos]
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On
Tuesday, representatives from Gov. Justice's Office and the
Department of Veterans Assistance participated in a wreath
laying ceremony at the Veterans Memorial on the State Capitol
grounds. West Virginia's last surviving Medal of Honor recipient,
Hershel "Woody" Williams, helped place the wreath at the
memorial. Also, representatives from the Governor's Office read a
proclamation, which formally recognized this week at Navy Week in
West Virginia. [Watch Video] [More Photos]
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After the
state received sufficient rainfall, Gov. Justice issued a
proclamation on Wednesday, officially rescinding the recent
statewide ban on all types of outdoor burning. Standard fall
burning season laws and regulations are now in effect. View information on fall
burning laws and guidelines here. The
burning of forestland, grass, grain, stubble, slash, debris, or
other inflammable materials is now allowed; but only from the hours
of 5 p.m. to 7 a.m. [Read More]
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This past
weekend, crews with the Division of Highways shifted lanes along
Interstate 64 in Charleston and got to work on a major project to
replace the bridge deck on the Danner Road overpass. The project is
scheduled to last 60 days and is expected to cause continued
delays. The DOH is asking drivers to remain patient and extremely
cautious when driving through the work zone. [Watch
Video]
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On
Thursday, Gov. Justice joined Preston County Commissioners and
Department of Transportation officials, taking part in a
"windshield" tour of the secondary road system in the
county. In a statement following the tour, the Governor acknowledged
that while substantial progress has already been made in the area,
there's still significant work to do. [Watch
Video]
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On
Saturday, Gov. Justice hopped into a classic car and greeted the
people of Elkins as he rode along in the annual Mountain State
Forest Festival parade. [More
Photos]
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On
Tuesday, First Lady Cathy Justice held an event to meet with
students from Pendleton County and talk to them about the
Communities In Schools (CIS) program. The First Lady spearheaded
efforts to expand CIS to Pendleton County this school year. The
program connects students with resources among their local
communities, with a goal of encouraging success in the classroom
and higher graduation rates. [More
Photos]
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Last week,
Department of Environmental Protection staff, along with volunteers
and employees from the City of Williamson and the Mingo County
Commission, removed 2,340 tires from just a 100-yard stretch of the
Tug Fork River in Williamson over the course of just four
days. For decades, tires had been illegally rolled into the
Tug Fork. Residents speculate that the flood of 1977 accumulated
all the tires in this specific section of the river – just behind
the Williamson K-8 school. The number of tires removed was
equivalent to 585 cars-worth of tires. For perspective, 585
mid-sized vehicles, lined end-to-end, would stretch more than a
mile-and-a-half. [Watch Video] [Read More]
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Additionally,
this week, a separate volunteer effort is underway to remove tires
from the New River Gorge. [More
Photos]
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State and
U.S. flags throughout West Virginia were flown at half-staff on
Sunday in honor of the National Fallen Firefighters Memorial
Service. [Read More]
Additionally, Gov. Justice ordered state and U.S. flags to
half-staff on Monday in Kanawha County in commemoration of the
distinguished life and service of West Virginia Delegate Sharon
Malcolm, who passed away last week. [Read More]
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On Monday,
software and technology solutions provider Sparksoft Corporation
marked the official opening of its new facility in Fairmont.
Sparksoft provides technology services in testing, development,
security, and program development. The new facility bridges the
space between the towers of the NASA building in the I-79
Technology Park. [Read More]
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Crews with
the Division of Highways recently began major construction work on
the Cheat Road Bridge, which passes over Interstate 68 near
Morgantown in Monongalia County. [Read More]
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On Monday,
the West Virginia Board of Education kicked off their "Ed
Voices" listening tour with their first such event, which was
held at Mingo Central Comprehensive High School. The listening tour
aims to provide students, teachers, parents, and other community
members opportunities to have their voices heard and bring new
ideas to the state Board, as well as the Department of Education. [More
Photos]
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On Monday,
the Department of Health and Human Resources announced that it is
working to address a state and national shortage of medical
professionals with a new financial assistance initiative. The
Statewide Therapist Loan Repayment Project is aimed at increasing
the number of therapists and counselors within West Virginia’s
behavioral health workforce. The new project allows recent
master’s level graduates and students in their final year of a
master’s level therapist program to apply for up to $20,000 in loan
repayment for their educational expenses in exchange for a two-year
commitment at an eligible workplace within West Virginia. [Read More]
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With the
winter flu season fast approaching, State Health Officer, Dr. Cathy
Slemp, issued a message to all West Virginia residents this week,
encouraging them to get their flu shot this year. [Watch
Video]
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On
Thursday, a team of West Virginia National Guard soldiers completed
a training exercise called "Bambi Bucket" – learning
how to fight wildfires from the air. Soldiers honed their skills
piloting a helicopter to fill and refill water from a natural water
source into an attached bucket and then dispersing the water over
the area of a potential fire. The training comes at a critical
moment when West Virginia is experiencing ongoing drought
conditions throughout the state. The buckets utilized in training
are capable of holding 550 gallons of water per scoop, which
equates to roughly 4,400 pounds of water. Depending on the location
of a fire and the proximity to a water source, crews could
potentially execute multiple passes to extinguish a fire during one
mission. [Watch Video] [More Photos] [Read More]
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Meanwhile,
last week, additional National Guard soldiers were trained in
basic wildland fire suppression from the ground by officials from
the West Virginia Division of Forestry. The training covered
basic wildland fire fighting techniques with a goal of providing
soldiers the basic skills and experience to operate on a fire line
side-by-side with experienced Forestry personnel. [Watch
Video]
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This week
also marked Fire Prevention Week in West Virginia, and the Office
of the State Fire Marshal announced this year’s Fire
Prevention Week campaign: “Not Every Hero Wears a Cape. Plan
and Practice Your Escape!” The goal is to educate everyone
about the small, but important, actions they can take to keep
themselves and those nearby safe; including establishing a fire
escape plan for your family, making sure your home has adequate
smoke detectors, and more. [Read More]
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On
Thursday, state officials held training exercises to practice
the Closed Point of Dispensing (CPOD) concept, which aims
to protect West Virginia state employees during public health
emergencies. A CPOD is a secure location where medications are
dispensed. State agencies have partnered with the
Kanawha-Charleston Health Department to establish CPODs at the
State Capitol Complex, Lottery headquarters on Charleston’s West
Side, and Department of Environmental Protection headquarters in
Kanawha City. [Watch
Video]
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On
Thursday, officials with the Department
of Health and Human Resources' Office of Drug Control Policy and
the Governor’s Council on Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment
announced the schedule for six upcoming regional public forums to
allow residents to review and provide comment to the West Virginia
Substance Use Response Plan. The plan describes the
current substance use environment in West Virginia, highlights
existing activities and initiatives to date, and presents a
framework of evidence-based goals, strategies, and objectives to
address the current gaps and needs. [Read More]
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On
Thursday, officials with the Division of Natural Resources
announced that the Governor’s One Shot Hunt – an antlerless
deer hunting event that provides a source of fundraising and
venison for the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources'
Hunters Helping the Hungry program – has been scheduled for
Oct. 26 at Stonewall Resort in Lewis County. [Read More]
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On
Thursday, the West Virginia National Guard announced that the
Military Authority’s Patriot Guardens program has been awarded a
grant in the amount of $667,535 from the U.S. Department of
Agriculture's National Institute of Food and Agriculture. The grant,
which will be shared in management by the West Virginia National
Guard Foundation and West Virginia Military Authority, will allow
Patriot Guardens to provide hands-on and immersive training in
livestock and aquaculture production for veterans, active and
retired members of the National Guard and veteran spouses or
military families. [Read More]
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On Sunday,
the West Virginia Air National Guard paused normal unit
training assembly activities to focus on wellness and resilience as
part of an Air Force-wide initiative to address a spike in suicides
across the force this year. Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David
Goldfein called on commanders to take a one-day “tactical pause”
and Chief Master Sgt. Of the Air Force Kaleth Wright said this will
serve as a “new beginning” for promoting resiliency in airmen. [More
Photos]
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On Monday,
officials with the Department of Environmental Protection announced
that they will be partnering with the West Virginia Water
Research Institute at West Virginia University to build a new acid
mine drainage treatment plant near Mount Storm. The project
will be a cost-effective and environmentally benign process to
simultaneously treat acid mine drainage and recover Rare Earth
Element oxides from acidic coal mine drainage and related products
that result from its treatment. [Read More]
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This past
week, the Department of Environmental Protection hosted water
festivals at multiple schools across the state, to teach
children about the water cycle, stream ecology, brook trout,
wetlands, and how air quality affects water quality. The most recent
event took place Wednesday in Boone County. [More
Photos]
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Another
water festival was held at Smithville Elementary School in Ritchie
County recently. [More Photos]
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