Latest West Virginia Headlines

All the headlines from our West Virginia Topic Page, ordered by recency.

West Virginia Purchases Second Drone to Assess Natural Disaster Damage

Aug 6 2015 // West Virginia’s Department of Transportation has purchased its second drone. The Charleston Gazette reports that the $3,500 drone will be used to help provide views of hard-to-reach or inaccessible areas. Department...

West Virginia Investigators: Harpers Ferry Fire Started on Business Patio

Aug 4 2015 // A state agency spokesman says a fire in Harpers Ferry, W. Va.’s, commercial area began on the rear patio of a business. Department of Military Affairs and Public Safety spokesman Lawrence Messina tells The...

West Virginia Prosecutors Say Explosion Evidence Crucial to Blankenship Case

Aug 3 2015 // Prosecutors say in court documents that evidence about the Upper Big Branch Mine disaster is a necessary part of the government’s criminal case against former Massey Energy CEO Don Blankenship. The Charleston...

West Virginia to See Decrease in Workers’ Comp Premiums

Aug 3 2015 // Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin says employers in the state will see an estimated $43 million reduction in workers’ compensation premiums in the coming year. Tomblin says employers have saved more than $323 million since the...

Bankruptcy Judge Approves $2.5M Cleanup Deal in West Virginia Spill Case

Aug 3 2015 // A bankruptcy judge has approved a $2.5 million deal involving the cleanup of a massive 2014 chemical spill in West Virginia. The order July 8 by U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Ronald Pearson says the agreement is in the best...

Fire Damage at West Virginia’s Historic Harper’s Ferry Estimated at $2M

Jul 30 2015 // A state fire official says a fire in’s Harpers Ferry, W. Va.’s commercial area caused about $2 million in damage. Assistant state fire marshal George Harms tells The Herald-Mail that the cause of the fire...

West Virginia’s Historic Harpers Ferry Devastated by Fire

Jul 28 2015 // The commercial area in historic Harpers Ferry, W. Va., was devastated July 23 when a fire destroyed a building that housed at least a half dozen businesses, Mayor Gregory Vaughn said. He said a long building that extended...

Ex-Massey CEO’s Lawyers: Keep West Virginia Mine Blast Out of Criminal Trial

Jul 28 2015 // Attorneys for former Massey Energy CEO Don Blankenship want evidence about the 2010 explosion at the Upper Big Branch mine in West Virginia kept out of his criminal trial this fall. The Charleston Gazette-Mail reports the...

Transport Company Updates Public on West Virginia Oil Train Crash Cleanup

Jul 27 2015 // CSX is continuing to closely monitor the environmental impact of a fiery oil-train derailment in southern West Virginia, a spokeswoman said last week. The company held a public informational meeting that drew a sparse...

Prosecutors Request Guilty Plea Hearing for Executive in West Virginia Spill Case

Jul 24 2015 // Federal prosecutors want a judge to schedule a guilty plea hearing for the top executive charged in a massive chemical spill that contaminated West Virginia’s biggest drinking water supply last year. In federal court...

West Virginia Assessing Damage from Rain, Flooding

Jul 21 2015 // Damage assessments are taking place in the 10 West Virginia counties that were drenched by torrential rain and flooding last week. The assessments started on July 16 and are being conducted jointly by state emergency...

Nationwide to Pay West Virginia $5.75M in Farm Bureau Discount Suit

Jul 20 2015 // West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey has reached a $5.75 million settlement with Nationwide Insurance regarding a discount on certain insurance products for the state’s Farm Bureau members. Former Attorney...

West Virginia Declares State of Emergency After Severe Flooding in 3 Counties

Jul 15 2015 // West Virginia Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin declared a state of emergency July 13 for Braxton, Webster and Wood counties after severe flooding. The state of emergency seeks to address the rockslides, mudslides and severe flooding...

Bankruptcy Judge Approves $2.5M Cleanup Deal in West Virginia Spill Case

Jul 10 2015 // A bankruptcy judge has approved a $2.5 million deal involving the cleanup of a massive 2014 chemical spill in West Virginia. The order July 8 by U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Ronald Pearson says the agreement is in the best...

Nationwide to Pay West Virginia $5.75M in Farm Bureau Discount Suit

Jul 5 2015 // Attorney General Patrick Morrisey has reached a $5.75 million settlement with Nationwide Insurance regarding a discount on certain insurance products for West Virginia Farm Bureau members. Morrisey announced the settlement...

West Virginia Lottery to Charities: Casino Night Fundraisers Are Illegal

Jul 2 2015 // West Virginia Lottery officials say “casino night” fundraisers conducted by charitable organizations are illegal but the Lottery does not have authority to crack down on such events. County prosecutors have...

Judge Won’t Recuse Prosecutors on West Virginia Chemical Spill Trial

Jun 30 2015 // A judge will let federal prosecutors keep working on a criminal case over a chemical spill last year in West Virginia, shooting down arguments that prosecutors should be recused from the case because they were among the...

West Virginia Looks to Tackle Highest Drug Overdose Rate in Nation

Jun 19 2015 // West Virginia has the highest rate of overdose deaths in the U.S., according to a report released this week, further spotlighting Appalachia’s festering drug abuse problem that is also fueling a rise in hepatitis C...

Freedom Industries to Pay $2.5M in West Virginia Spill Cleanup

Jun 19 2015 // The company behind a massive chemical spill last year has reached a $2.5 million deal with West Virginia environmental regulators for cleaning up its contaminated site, according to new court filings. The Charleston...

West Virginia City to Require Registration of Vacant Properties

Jun 17 2015 // Owners of vacant properties in Parkersburg, W. Va., soon will have to register the structures with the city. City officials are implementing a new registry for vacant properties. The Parkersburg News and Sentinel reports...