RADFORD, Va. – Tropical Storm Helene brought flooding to Radford that it hadn’t seen in almost a century.
“This was the second-worst flooding in the history of the city,” said Jenni Webb with Radford City. “Bisset Park was hit tremendously. We had probably over a couple million dollars in damage.”
Seven months after the storm, while not 100 percent restored, people are out enjoying the park as spring sets in.
“I like to run here whenever it’s nice out,” said Katie Wood, a local resident.
Patricia and Steve Boulanger added, “It’s just so beautiful, and it’s big so we can take the dogs and walk all over.”
The city has restored most of the trails, picnic areas, fields, and the playground.
Webb said it has been a long restoration process.
“We’ve been actively working with FEMA on recovery and then mitigation moving forward. They’ve actually been down here and assessed damage in the park,” Webb said.
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The baseball field and pickleball courts are next on the restoration schedule.
Webb said Bisset is a significant economic driver for the city.
“This is our busy time of the year for use in the park,” Webb said. “This is pretty heavily used within the New River Valley as a whole, and then economically, those sports tournaments bring in a lot of people.”
Park visitors said they were surprised at the recovery progress.
“We actually haven’t been back since the storm,” said Vicky Willis and Jasmine Monroy. “It looks pretty much back to normal.”
“The city has done a great job. The pickleball courts are still not in use but everything else is coming along,” the Boulangers said. “It feels better.”
Visitors said they hope the progress can continue as they head into even warmer months.