WV MetroNews
The Voice of West Virginia
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Ground was broken Wednesday for a new $11 million KOA Campground and Resort at Mylan Park in Morgantown.
Gov. Jim Justice, state Tourism Secretary Chelsea Ruby and others celebrated the day as a win for local residents and a win for the growing state tourism industry.
“Today is an incredible accomplishment for this community, which has worked really hard not only to develop a community asset but also one that people from across the country are traveling to,” Ruby said.
Campground GM Frank Witt said it will be on 35 acres of reclaimed mine land on the south side of the park. The park will consist of a lodge, 148 spaces for recreational vehicles, four cabins, and four tent spaces. Campers will have access to water, electricity, WiFi, and all activities offered at the park while they are in operation.
“The lodge is where people come to register, do group activities, and congregate,” Witt said. “We’ll have a cornhole, bocce ball, and a kids play area, so it’s a center of attention.”
The Mylan Park facility will join the KOA statewide network that includes the Flatwoods KOA Journey, Harper Ferry/Civil War Battlefields KOA Holiday, and the Huntington/Fox Fire Holiday.
“If you look at the accommodation sector of the tourism economy, RV camping is one of the fastest-growing things,” Ruby said. “This is something where we don’t have enough capacity in West Virginia; we have more campers than we have spots.”
As the ground-breaking was being held, participants and spectators were arriving for the Black Diamond Cluster Dog Show. The parking lot in the center of the facility was filling up with RVs that would have likely been going to the Mylan Park KOA Campground rather than the middle of a parking lot.
Also Wednesday, new turf fields Mylan Park were dedicated. They were funded through local efforts and a $3.5 million grant from the West Virginia Development Authority. This includes a returf of the multi-purpose field located at the lower portion of the baseball and softball complex and the addition of a grass soccer field, making seven field upgrades in total. Also, six outdoor pickleball courts were officially opened.
“People right now are in the parking lot, and they’re here for different events in December, January, and February, and now with the turf fields that will get more year-round play, you’ll see more of that focus,” Witt said.
Mylan Park started with 30 acres donated by Milan Puskar in 1999. Twenty-five years later, the park is more than 1,000 acres, with a variety of facilities added over the years based on community needs.
“What it does for our county, our region, and our area for people of all ages and all sectors of life, as well as our economic growth in our community, is just fantastic,” Mark Nessleroad, one of the park’s founders and board members, said.
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Sunday marks the 100th anniversary of the Benwood Mine Disaster. It was shortly after 7 a.m. on Monday, April 28, 1924, when an explosion and fire tore through the Wheeling Steel Corporation mine in the northern panhandle community just south of Wheeling.
Over 100 men had gone in the mine just a half-hour before to begin work when the explosion occurred. The Wheeling Register newspaper reported, “a deafening blast of air, a rush of smoke and gas fumes, rocked and tore the sand house and motor sheds, sweeping sections of sheet iron high into the air.”
Rescuers were on the scene quickly, but their efforts were hampered by roof falls, after-damp (the buildup of carbon monoxide after an explosion) and the bodies of the deceased. “Slowly the rescue team pushed their way through the blackness,” the newspaper reported. “Step by step they made their way toward the main entry a mile away.”
A crowd of worried family members gathered in the rain outside the mine. “Women, frantic with fear and many tugging and carrying small children, ran through the heavy rain and wept and wrung their hands piteously as anxious queries were answered only by grim shakes of the head,” the paper reported.
Andy Wilson, captain of one of the rescue teams, said after emerging from the shattered mine, “There’s no hope I fear.” The headline in the Wheeling Intelligencer read, “Last Ray of Hope for Lives of Miners Gone.”
After several days, the rescue efforts were shifted to the task of recovering the bodies. According to the West Virginia Encyclopedia, “By Friday (four days after the explosion), it became clear that 119 men were dead.”
Temporary morgues were set up, including the nearby Cooey-Bentz furniture and dry goods store. Some of the men who were burned too badly to be identified were buried in a mass grave. Twenty-two of the victims were buried side by side in a mass funeral at the Mt. Calvary cemetery.
An account of the tragedy in the Ohio County Library noted that among the dead were three pairs of fathers and sons, five pairs of brothers and three pairs of cousins.
Most of the workers were immigrants. The list of victims included their nationality: Polish, Italian, Greek, Slavic, Hungarian, Croatian, English, Welsh, Scots, Lithuanian. They were part of the great European diaspora that had come to America for work and a better life.
The West Virginia Encyclopedia reported that the explosion was caused by an open flame on a light that “ignited firedamp, an explosive mixture of methane and air.” In addition, the mine was dry and dusty, so the dust explosion carried to every corner of the mine.
R.M. Lambie, Chief of the State Department of Mines, called for improved mine safety. “Present laws must be brought up to date in order to meet the requirements of our fast growing industry, and guard lives and property,” he said. “It is high time that an interstate code of safe-practice regulations be formulated.”
But mining would continue to be a dangerous occupation. Another 239 men would be killed in 12 coal mining disasters in West Virginia before the end of the decade, including 97 miners at the Federal No. 3 mine in Everettville in Monongalia County.
The Benwood Mine Disaster remains the third worst in West Virginia, after the Monongah Mine disaster in 1907 where 361 miners died and the Eccles Explosion in 1913 that killed 183 miners.
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A program-best finish at the Big 12 Golf Championships might propel West Virginia onto NCAA Regional play next month. The Mountaineers finished fifth out of 14 teams in the 72-hole conference tournament at Whispering Pines Golf Club in Trinity, Texas.
WVU posted a team score of 5-over-par in the three-day event. Texas won the title at 25-under. Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and Baylor finished second through fourth, respectively.
WVU’s No. 1 seed golfer Max Green led the five-man Mountaineer squad by finishing in a tie for 18th place. Shady Spring High School alumnus Todd Duncan tied for 23rd place. Jackson Davenport (tied for 31st), Pierce Grieve (tied for 39th) and Kaleb Wilson (tied for 46th) completed the scoring for WVU.
“This was the most impressive tournament of any during my time at West Virginia,” said WVU head coach Sean Covich. “Our postseason hopes were on the line in the biggest, most challenging tournament of the entire season and the guys got it done. Each one of these guys contributed to our top five finish, even those not in the lineup pushed our starters to play their best. Words can’t explain how proud I am of them and most of all, how happy I am for them.”
West Virginia’s previous top finish at the Big 12’s was ninth place (2023, 2021 and 2018) in a 10-team tournament.
WVU entered the championship No. 64 in the national rankings and finished ahead of No. 12 Texas Tech, No. 40 BYU and No. 49 Houston. No. 17 Texas (-25) won the event, followed by No. 14 Oklahoma (-7), No. 26 Oklahoma State (-1) and No. 33 Baylor (+3).
“It was a great finish and we needed it,” Covich said. “I didn’t let the guys know this, but if we didn’t finish in the top five our season was over. They stepped up and got it done.
“We expect to hear our name called [in the selection show] based on how we played this week.”
The NCAA Selection Show will air on Wednesday, May 1 at 2 p.m. on the Golf Channel. NCAA regionals will take place at various sites from May 13-15. WVU last qualified for NCAA Regional play in 2019.
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SUMMERSVILLE, W.Va. — A combination of small ball and solid contact throughout the lineup led Greenbrier West to their 15th win of the spring, 10-1 at Nicholas County.
The No. 4 Cavaliers swept the season home-and-home series with the Grizzlies (10-11), winning the contest in five innings.
West scored two runs in the first inning and they later extended their lead to 4-0 with single runs in the third and fourth innings. The Cavaliers took advantage of their speed to create runs in the early innings. With a 4-1 lead entering the fifth, West’s first six batters in the inning all scored and five consecutive batters had base hits.
“Lately, we have been playing a lot of small ball and using our speed,” said Greenbrier West head coach Tony Hinkle. ” We’ve got speed pretty much all throughout the lineup. But tonight it was good to see some good, hard line drives. That’s one thing we have been working on at practice. That had been lacking a little bit the last few weeks.”
Junior pitcher Kyndall Taylor went the distance in the circle. She allowed one unearned run, four hits, one walk and she struck out a pair of batters.
“Kyndall in the last three games has been money. She really has been throwing well. She is all about contact. She is not a strikeout pitcher. As long as she’s got the spin and she is hitting her location, and she was definitely doing that tonight.”
Brooke Patterson scored three runs for the Cavaliers while Brilee Redden and Brooklyn Adkins each crossed the plate twice. Redden went 3-for-3 with a single, a double, a triple and two runs batted in. Adkins and Preslee Treadway each drove in a pair of runs.
After winning Class A Region III and advancing to the state tournament last May, Hinkle scheduled a number of Class AA and Class AAA opponents in the hopes of making another postseason run.
“We toughened out schedule up this year a good bit. We knew it was going to be a little bit different. But it has helped us going into sectionals.
“We’re probably [batting] as a team 80 points under [2023]. But we are playing a lot tougher competition this year. You can’t hang your head on that. We’ve played well all year and we have been in every game. So we are happy about that.”
The Cavaliers are the No. 1 seed in their sectional tournament and they will open postseason play Tuesday.
Makenzie Hanshaw had two of Nicholas’ four base hits. Cambria Neal scored the Grizzlies’ run in the fourth inning.
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CHARLESTON, W.Va. — There’s a new class of National Board Certification teachers in West Virginia.
The West Virginia Board of Education and the Department of Education (WVDE) honored 46 newly certified National Board Certification teachers (NBCTs) from 20 different West Virginia counties at the state Culture Center in Charleston Wednesday.
“National Board Certified Teachers exemplify the ideas of continuous learning and development in the profession,” said Michele L Blatt, State Superintendent of Schools. “Their dedication to education and their students provide credence to academic achievement.”
The lone honoree from Kanawha County this year is Melinda Monks. She has been a special education teacher for about 12 years. For 10 of those years, she taught in intellectual disabilities at Bridgeview Elementary before switching over to Montrose Elementary and doing resource support. Monks said it was vigorous process to get certified but well worth the time and effort.
“National Board Certification is the top of the top for educators,” she said. “It means you’ve gone the extra mile with your professional development to become the best teacher you can and you get recognized for that.”
Reaching nationally board certified status is a process that could take as long as three years to complete. The wait time for applicants to hear if they’ve become certified could take another nine months. The credential is voluntary, but does present an opportunity to become more advanced in teaching.
Becoming board certified was important for Monks because of how much she cares about the students in her classroom and allowing them to get the proper education that they deserve.
“I love my position because I really believe in the kids of West Virginia and I think they need increased support to really be successful,” said Monks.
Superintendent of Cabell County Schools Dr. Ryan Saxe said becoming board certified is an important achievement and there are so many who have done that in his county and in the state.
“We’re blessed to have so many nationally board certified teachers right here in West Virginia teaching our students,” Saxe said.
According to Saxe, there are close to 60 national board certified teachers in Cabell County. There are a total of 1,218 NBCTs in West Virginia. The state ranks 14th in the country for the percentage of NBCTs and 17th for the number of newly certified teachers.
“What it does to enrich the opportunities for our students because of the skills that these teachers have is something we are truly blesses by,” said Saxe.
The state incentives teachers who reach this certification. Nationally board certified teachers are also given an annual $3,500 salary supplement provided by the WVDE. Most counties, including Cabell County, may match that contribution from the state or support NBCTs with bonuses.
“These educators are walking away over the next five years with a very significant supplement to their income,” Saxe said.
The WVDE provides mentors to assist those pursuing the NBC and also reimburses the fees that are associated with the application process.
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MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Joint Force Headquarters – Department of Defense Information Network (JFHQ-DODIN) are holding Locked Shields 24 at the West Virginia University Coliseum.
Locked Shields 24 is considered the most complex live-fire cyber exercise and includes 40 nations and 3,000 people from around the world participating in real time.
In Morgantown, 190 cyber experts, including professionals from the Department of Defense and federal and state agencies, along with participants from WVU and Marshal University, reacted to a large-scale cyber incident. The realistic scenario provides an opportunity for participants to respond to the threat in a controlled training environment.
WVU and Marshal University are partners with JFHQ-DODIN and U.S. Cyber Command to establish the National Center of Excellence for Cyber Security in Critical Infrastructure in the Mountain State, which is set to break ground later this year in Huntington.
A companion operation is under development at WVU.
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CHARLESTON, W.Va. — The staff of the state Public Service Commission has determined Mountaineer Gas acted appropriately and reasonable last November when thousands of gallons of water from A water line break filled the utility’s lines on Charleston’s West Side creating natural gas outages for hundreds of customers.
The PSC opened a general investigation in January to determine how the utility responded. The commission’s staff posted its recommendation Wednesday afternoon.
“Staff determines Mountaineer’s maintenance and response were very appropriate and reasonable given the size of the event, and they diligently worked to safely restore gas service,” Staff Attorney Chris Howard wrote. “Mountaineer acted according to their written emergency procedures, other written procedures, as well as Federal pipeline safety regulations, to promptly address the gas outage and safely restore service while protecting the safety of customers, their employees, and the public. Staff recommends this matter be closed.”
The PSC will enter a final order in the case at a later date.
Meanwhile, a separate general investigation into West Virginia American Water Company’s role in the outage continues. The PSC entered an order Wednesday extending the due date for the staff final memorandum until July 24. The PSC also granted a motion to allow the Consumer Advocate Division to intervene in the general investigation of the water company.
MORE Read Joint Staff Memorandum here
In the Staff Memorandum in the Mountaineer Gas investigation, the staff determined the Nov. 10, 2023 event was not a typical gas emergency because there was no release of gas.
“Mountaineer had to visit each customer to turn off the gas service, and revisited each customer to restore service and make sure that the customers gas equipment and appliances were functional,” the memorandum said. “Mountaineer had to unearth gas pipelines at over 300 locations to remove water, and then repair those locations according to pipeline safety regulations.”
Mountaineer Gas Senior Vice President Moses Skaff said the recommendation from the PSC staff speaks for itself.
“We have said all along that this was not a routine natural gas outage. I’ve said I’ve never seen anything like this in my 33 years in the gas industry,” Skaff told MetroNews. “Our main goal was to provide safe, reliable natural gas service to our customers in the community and to take care of customers above and beyond.”
Mountaineer Gas paid for and replaced dozens of hot water tanks and furnaces that were destroyed when water shot through residential gas lines.
The PSC Staff credited Mountaineer for bringing in many crews from outside the area to work 10 to 12 hour days to restore service. The utility has also continued to perform leak controls in the area, the Staff memorandum said.
Wednesday’s filing also includes the final recommendations from the PSC’s Gas Pipeline Safety Division and the Commission’s Legal Division.
The pipeline safety division said the outage was created by “an unfortunate chain of events.”
“Mountaineer’s maintenance and response were very appropriate and reasonable given the size of the event, and they diligently worked to safely restore gas service,” the safety division wrote.
The legal division also said Mountaineer’s response was appropriate.
“Mountaineer acted according to their written emergency procedures, other written procedures as well as Federal pipeline safety regulations to promptly address the gas outage and safely restore service while protecting the safety of customers, their employees, and the public,” the legal staff said.
There remain several lawsuits filed on behalf customers in connection with the outage and response. Mountaineer Gas and West Virginia Water have also disagreed on who is to blame for the outage.
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CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Four major, award-winning musical headliners will take the stage at this year’s 2024 Charleston Sternwheel Regatta.
On Wednesday afternoon, the Sternwheel Regatta Commission and Mayor Amy Shuler Goodwin announced this year’s line-up for the five-day event, which kicks-off Wednesday, July 3 and goes through Sunday, July 7 along Charleston’s Kanawha Boulevard.
The groups and artists set to perform at year three of the newly-revived Regatta include top reggae artist, Shaggy, the Emmy-winning Beatles tribute band, The Fab Four, Eddie Montgomery of the country group Montgomery Gentry, and a cluster of 90s hip-hop artists part of the ‘I Love the 90s Tour’– Vanilla Ice, Treach of Naughty by Nature, Tone Loc, and Young MC.
Goodwin said it takes months of planning just to build-up a strong musical line-up for the Regatta.
“A lot of agents work with different artists, and so we tried to get a couple that we wanted to see and put our feelers out, it actually just starts with what we knew worked and what we know will work,” Goodwin said.
Shaggy will kick-off the four days of music that’s part of the Regatta on Wednesday, July 3. He is among the top three streamed reggae artists of all time on Spotify, behind Bob Marley and Sean Paul. Shaggy has sold over 40 million albums with 8 singles on the Billboard Hot 100, including hits such as, ‘Boombastic,’ ‘Angel,’ and ‘It Wasn’t Me.’
On Thursday, July 4, there will be a British invasion to take the stage for Independence Day. The Emmy award-winning Fab Four features note-for-note renditions of Beatles’ classics from ‘I Want to Hold Your Hand’ to ‘Hey Jude,’ along with three costume changes between sets.
Eddie Montgomery, the surviving member of Montgomery Gentry is expected to light up the crowd with country favorites such as ‘My Town’ and ‘Hillbilly Shoes’ on Friday, July 5.
Finally, on Saturday, July 6, Vanilla Ice, Treach of Naughty by Nature, Tone Loc, and Young MC will take the stage all at once to perform hits from a decade gone-by with their ‘I Love the 90s Tour.’
Goodwin said with accommodating the musical tastes of over 200,000 people, she and the Regatta Commission always try to bring in a variety.
She said it was quite a unique experience to see moms and their kids dancing and singing along to the songs when one of last year’s top headlining performers, Flo-Rida took the stage.
Goodwin said the variety in last year’s line-up seemed to appeal to everyone, basing it off the response they got from the crowd, which she said is something her and the commission kept in mind when putting together this Regatta’s line-up.
“The crowd tells us, and our constituents tell us what they want by showing up, and investing in their time, and quite frankly, their expendable income, so if you’re spending a Saturday night with us and you’re spending money, then what we’re doing is working,” she said.
Charleston Convention and Visitors Bureau Director and CEO, Tim Brady said the music helped contribute to the $37.2 million return on investment the city brought in with last year’s Regatta, as well as the $31 million the year prior in 2022.
“Over two years, an economic impact of $68.7 million,” Brady announced at Wednesday’s press conference.
After being discontinued in 2009, city officials agree that the Regatta has made a significant comeback when it made its return in 2022.
Brady said beyond the revenue, the five-day event has also left quite a cultural impact behind.
“This event has a great economic impact in our community, it also has a great community impact in general, because it gives us a sense of pride in place, showing that we’re proud of where we’re from here in Charleston, West Virginia,” Brady said.
Last year, the event brought in a total of 220,000 people from across the state and surrounding states.
Goodwin said not only has the Regatta brought in the bucks for the city and the region, but it went into directly supporting around 7,000 jobs that make up the area’s business landscape, as well.
“This means our hotels, this means our restaurants, this means supporting that entertainment and sports community, that hub that I talk about,” Goodwin said. “It means people saying, ‘I need more help, I need more staff, so not only hiring, but also sustaining the amount of jobs we have here.”
A full schedule of Sternwheel Regatta events can be found here.
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MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Edward Vesterinen is well aware he’s no longer the new guy.
That doesn’t mean the West Virginia defensive lineman doesn’t sometimes still feel like one despite preparing for his fourth and final season with the Mountaineers.
“It is very hard to believe, because when you come here, you think you have so much time, but really, it goes quick, and life goes quick if you don’t pay attention,” Vesterinen said. “This year, I’m trying to come with a different energy knowing that every snap could be my last, and just enjoy the friendships and playing for this school.”
It wasn’t all that long ago Vesterinen, a native of Helinski, Finland, was discovered by West Virginia defensive coordinator Jordan Lesley through social media clips and then offered a scholarship to play for the Mountaineers.
In a way, the work was just beginning for Vesterinen, who spent a good portion of the next few years acclimating to life in the United States and American football.
In fact, Vesterinen admits he had little to no idea what to expect upon his more permanent arrival in America.
“All I saw was the movies. Everything I based off America was from movies and Hollywood movies,” Vesterinen said. “I came here, people are very friendly and very talkative. I feel like I’ve become more Americanized now. I like to talk more and express myself. I enjoy the long summer here. I’m becoming more a part of this American society.”
A season ago, Vesterinen was a bigger part of the WVU defense. He played in all 13 games and was in on 28 tackles, while recording 4.5 tackles for loss and three sacks. That’s in comparison to Vesterinen’s first two seasons, when he was utilized at a lower rate, played a combined 20 games and finished with 17 total tackles, three tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks.
“Last year was more of like, I can’t believe I’m here as a Power 4 level-starter,” says Vesterinen, who felt his level of play picked up as the season progressed. “Now, I’m here for everything.“
At 6-foot-3, 285 pounds, Vesterinen has the stature to hold-up against the run and can also be counted on to get after opposing quarterbacks.
Still, playing a position where statistics hardly ever tell the entire story and can be tough to come by, Vesterinen says his discipline through more knowledge of the scheme and game as a whole is a key reason he believes his best football is still in front of him.
“Playing boundary tackle, I celebrate when I see other people doing their job. I can’t just try to make plays, because I’m going to make mistakes and lose my responsibility if I I try to do too much,” Vesterinen said. “I need to do my job and wait for it. The play will come to me at the end of the day. I do value rings more than how many tackles I have. I value memories more. I’ll do anything for the team. I’m that type of a person.”
That wasn’t always easily understood by Vesterinen, who played for the Helinski Roosters and Finnish Senior National Team before being introduced to life in the Big 12 Conference.
“It’s more finding a way of how can I make a play through playing my job? Seeing what kind of pass the offense is using and are they sliding? I’m able to find edges I can work with rather than before when everything was numbers and very straightforward,” Vesterinen said. “Now, I’m able to think outside the box more.”
As one of the Mountaineers’ more experienced defensive lineman, Vesterinen’s role in the position room has changed at least somewhat.
A player who found himself soaking in as much knowledge as possible in the past is now instead dishing out his fair share of it to teammates.
“In our d-line room, Sean [Martin] is our designated leader and the more vocal guy,” Vesterinen said. “I help enforce everything. I really like that. I might not be a guy who talks a lot, but I’m the guy who likes to enforce things.”
A business major, Vesterinen says he hasn’t yet decided what he’ll do at the conclusion of his college football career, though he has it narrowed down to continuing on with the sport or putting his degree to use, whether that be in America, back home or elsewhere.
“I’ll find out how it’s going to go at the end. I like this place a lot and I could spend some time here,” Vesterinen said. “I’m going to pursue my football career as long as I can and then we’ll see where it goes.”
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MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — West Virginia University Athletics has entered into a deal with the North Central West Virginia Airport (CKB) that designate the facility as the “The Official Airport of WVU Athletics.”
The agreement will last through 2027.
“We are pleased to welcome the North Central West Virginia Airport to our team as the Official Airport of WVU Athletics,” West Virginia University Vice President and Director of Athletics Wren Baker said. “The airport has a proven commitment to providing safe and reliable air travel, and with the future completion of its new terminal, the services provided will become even more important for our state. Our department looks forward to continuing the great relationship we have built with the staff there.”
CKB is served by two commercial air carriers- Allegiant Air and Contour Airlines and is a vital hub for business and personal travel.
“The North Central West Virginia Airport is pleased to embark on this partnership with West Virginia University Athletics,” expressed Airport Director Rick Rock. “WVU Athletics serves as a significant cultural and economic driver in our region. We are eager to contribute to the fan experience by ensuring seamless travel for Mountaineer enthusiasts from across the country. With our new CKB terminal opening this Fall, the timing is perfect to intertwine these two great entities together.”
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