DANVILLE, Va. (WDBJ) – Water levels in the Danville River are still pretty high Friday after heavy rains brought by Tropical Depression Debby – but it’s actually not as bad as the Danville Fire Department expected.
“We were prepared for a river level of nearly 30 feet and 6 to 8 inches of rain. That’s what we were preparing for,” said Danville’s deputy fire chief Tim Duffer. “Fortunately, that didn’t happen.”
On Thursday, people in Danville were preparing for possible flash flooding and even a tornado. When the time came, Duffer said, the situation wasn’t too bad.
“We expected the worst. And fortunately that didn’t happen,” he said.
Some places have seen a little more rain than others. There are still a few fallen trees on the green at Tiny Town Golf, but for the most part the south side has seen more rain than damage.
“Some of the trails may be affected, so they’ll have to remove the mud. That will probably happen next week. But fortunately the damage hasn’t been major,” Duffer said.
Duffer said he was glad there was no real emergency and that the day was still good practice in case one did occur.
“We’re using it as an exercise, so to speak. Even though we didn’t react, and that’s good because we didn’t need to, it gave us the opportunity to look at everything we need to improve,” he said.
Prepared for the worst and better off. It’s still tropical storm season, but Duffer said firefighters are now better prepared for what could happen in the coming months.
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