West Virginia declares emergency in all 55 counties after flash flooding; Hawaii power restoration passes 86 percent as Lala tracks through Papahanaumokuakea

EM Morning Brief

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West Virginia declares emergency in all 55 counties after flash flooding; Hawaii power restoration passes 86 percent as Lala tracks through Papahanaumokuakea

EMN Morning Brief: August 19, 2026

Brian Colburn

Aug 19, 2026

Today’s EM Morning Brief covers a West Virginia State of Emergency spanning all 55 counties after three days of flash flooding, mudslides and water rescues, plus a separate countywide declaration and school closures in Kanawha County. In Hawaii, roughly 33,600 customers remain without power nine days after Lala, with boil water and essential-needs notices still active on Hawaii Island and an East Maui community cut off by a washed-out bridge. The national wildfire picture stays at Preparedness Level 5 with 76 uncontained large fires and 3.7 million acres burning, driving evacuations in Washington, Oregon, California, Montana, New Mexico and Alaska. Also in this episode: Indiana’s derecho recovery under a federal Emergency Declaration, cleanup and EPA air monitoring at the Glenpool pipeline tank fire in Oklahoma, four new CISA known exploited vulnerabilities under the new BOD 26-04 model, and dangerous heat across the Desert Southwest. EM Morning Brief is your concise daily update on national and state-by-state emergency management news. Produced by Sitch Radio, an EOC Voices podcast.

Key Takeaways

• West Virginia statewide emergency: All 55 counties are under a 30-day State of Emergency after Aug 16 to 18 flash flooding and mudslides. Kanawha County declared its own emergency, Metro 911 logged 2,100 calls and 60 water rescues Sunday, and 10 schools in the Riverside High attendance area are closed for the first three days of the school year.

• Hawaii lifelines: Roughly 33,600 customers remain without power statewide, with about 24,400 on Hawaii Island. Boil water in Pahala, an essential-needs-only water notice countywide, four potable water tanker sites, low pressure in upper metropolitan Honolulu, and intermittent Oahu cellular service all remain active. Lower Nahiku in East Maui is cut off by a washed-out bridge.

• Hurricane Lala still active: As of the Tuesday late-morning advisory, Lala carried 105 mph winds with a Hurricane Watch for Papahanaumokuakea from Lisianski Island to Maro Reef and a forecast of large surf inundating low-lying atolls beginning Wednesday.

• Wildfire posture: National Preparedness Level 5, 76 uncontained large fires, 3,736,566 acres on active incidents, and year-to-date acreage at 168 percent of the ten-year average. Australian and New Zealand crews and 240 Army soldiers are supporting operations.

• Highest-risk fires with evacuations: Little Giant, Washington (134,635 acres, 10 percent); Three Queens, Washington (Level 3 GO around Cooper Lake); Grasshopper, Oregon (90,667 acres, 49 percent, 22 structures lost); Hagen, Oregon (56,869 acres, 17 percent); Sand Creek, Montana (31,652 acres, 1 percent); Frijoles, New Mexico (11,335 acres, 9 percent, Cundiyo upgraded to Set); Mukluk, Alaska (Level 3 GO evacuations, about 20 homes damaged).

• Indiana derecho recovery: Seven confirmed storm deaths, 98,824 customers out as of 2 p.m. Tuesday, and 53 counties covered under federal Emergency Declaration EM-3651 for Public Assistance. NIPSCO targets full restoration by late Friday.

• Hazmat: Glenpool, Oklahoma tank farm cleanup continues with EPA-coordinated fence-line air monitoring. Shelter-in-place lifted, but a voluntary evacuation recommendation remains between 126th and 131st Streets South.

• Cyber: Four new CISA known exploited vulnerabilities affecting Microsoft IKE, Microsoft SharePoint, Broadcom VMware vCenter and Apple macOS. Federal agencies now prioritize under BOD 26-04, a risk-based model rather than a uniform patch deadline. Two ICS advisories also issued, including one for CISA’s own Malcolm network monitoring suite.

• Heat: Extreme Heat Warnings run through Friday across Arizona, southern Nevada and inland southern California. Maricopa County has confirmed 81 heat deaths this year, more than double last year’s pace at the same date.

• Water systems: New boil water advisory in McCormick County, South Carolina. St. Louis and West Columbia, South Carolina advisories both lifted Tuesday.

• Assistance: Five Disaster Service Centers opened Tuesday in Mississippi for Tropical Storm Arthur survivors under DR-4930, serving Hancock, Harrison, Pearl River and Stone counties.

Sources

The Emergency Management Network

West Virginia declares emergency in all 55 counties after flash flooding; Hawaii power restoration passes 86 percent as Lala tracks through Papahanaumokuakea

Key Takeaways

Sponsors

Sources

CISA

Wildfire, national

Tropical and marine

Severe weather and flooding

FEMA and federal assistance

USGS volcano

Public health and food safety

Travel advisories

Alaska

Arizona

California

Colorado

Hawaii

Indiana

Kansas and Missouri

Mississippi

Nevada

New Mexico

Oklahoma

Oregon

South Carolina

South Dakota

Utah

Washington

West Virginia

Wisconsin

Wyoming

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