ELKVIEW, W.Va. — The culvert bridge is back open at the Crossings Mall in northern Kanawha County more than one year after the June 2016 flood.
Raging flood waters wiped out the bridge located off Interstate 79 in Elkview. It served as the only entrance to the shopping center.
A new bridge was built and officially reopened Friday morning.
Kroger’s Fuel Center was the first business to welcome customers back at 6 a.m. Friday.
“The people that I’ve talked to this morning — they’re just ecstatic,” said Elkview Kroger Store Manager Dan Workman. “A lady came up here at about 7:30 and just couldn’t wait to give me a hug that we were open.”
The popular grocery store is part of 23 out of the 26 businesses in the plaza that plan to reopen.
“I know it means a lot to the community,” Workman said.
Elkview residents have limited grocery stores in the area. They’ve had to travel to other stores like Smith’s Foodfair on U.S. Route 119 or drive an extra 20-30 minutes to get to a store for food items. A lot of motorists traveling down I-79 also depend on the Crossings Mall businesses.
“I can’t go more than five or ten minutes without one of our loyal customers coming up and asking me how things are going and how quick we can get open,” Workman said. “It has hurt, I’m sure, all the travelers, so I know the whole community is excited for us to get open.”
Kroger hired six more people to work at the Fuel Center. After the flood, Elkview employees were offered temporary positions at other stores.
“Of course they’ve been offered compensation at the other stores for travel. A lot of them got to keep all of their hours they were getting here at another store, so it’s just morally been an inconvenience other than anything else,” Workman said.
The gas station has been updated with new technology, cleaned and repainted. There are eight gas pumps. Snacks, soft drinks, tobacco product and car supplies are also provided at the Fuel Center.
A grand reopening ceremony for the store is scheduled for late August.