Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, July 2, 1995 TAG: 9507030085
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: ASSOCIATED PRESS
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Some sunshine peeked through the sky, but thunderstorms also returned to some of the most saturated areas as weary residents struggled to begin the arduous task of cleaning up from nine days of nearly continuous rain.
The body of 3-year-old Alexa Orantes was spotted in a fallen tree around 11:25 a.m. by a state police helicopter over the Shenandoah River, said Janet Clements, a state Department of Emergency Services spokeswoman.
Warren County Sheriff Lynn Armentrout said the child's body was retrieved by rescuers on jet skis about 10 miles downstream from the campground where she was washed away during a flash flood.
An hour later in Madison County, the body of 64-year-old Doris Frisbie was found by search dogs beneath some rocks in the Robinson River, according to state police spokeswoman Lucy Caldwell.
President Clinton declared Madison County, Rockbridge County, Greene County and the cities of Buena Vista and Lexington federal disaster areas. On Friday, Gov. George Allen asked for federal help for 21 counties and announced a $23 million state assistance package for flood victims.
James L. Witt, director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, said other counties and localities may be added once damage surveys are completed.
Meanwhile, Alexa's family was relieved the search for her was over.
``It was a great relief to them when they came back and said they had found the little girl,'' said William Barton, a police chaplain who was with the child's family. ``The mother said now she could put her to rest.''
It was about 12:30 p.m. when search dogs uncovered the body of Frisbie near the town of Criglersville. The woman was last seen by her husband just before their home was destroyed by a mud slide.
Caldwell said the body was found under flood debris about 200 yards downstream from the site where the home once stood.
Frisbie's four children had traveled from the Tidewater area to help in the four-day search for their mother.
``It doesn't even look like the same place,'' Rebecca Tucker, the woman's daughter, said Friday. ``It's like every rock on the mountain came down on my parents' house."
In Rockbridge County, volunteers from the Blue Ridge Area Food Bank and Christian Outreach were distributing food Saturday in Glasgow and Buena Vista.
Gene Mullenax, the food bank's operations manager, said six tons of frozen and dried food - ``about 9,000 meals'' - had been distributed.
Residents and business owners who sustained losses in the federally designated disaster areas can begin applying for assistance by calling (800) 462-9029 - or (800) 462-7585 for the hearing and speech impaired - between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m. seven days a week until further notice.
Contractors and operators who wish to volunteer time or heavy equipment for the cleanup efforts in Madison County are asked to contact the Madison County Rescue Squad at (703) 948-5353.
Keywords:
FATALITY
by CNB