WHEELING — U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin said he will do all he can to help obtain federal aid and assistance for local areas affected by flooding.

Manchin, D-W.Va, spoke on the issue while traveling in the Northern Panhandle on Thursday.

“I went up and down the panhandle, and it was just horrible,” Manchin said during a stop in Wheeling. “I came through Follansbee and Wellsburg … thank God there’s not been anything life-threatening. People are taking heed.

“They need to know there is (state and federal) help out there for them. The time they need help is when the water starts receding. That’s when you can get the most things done — when they are hauling the trash away, everything that’s been destroyed.”

Federal help to assist those affected by flooding comes from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, though Gov. Jim Justice must first declare a state of emergency designating affected areas, Manchin explained.

On Thursday afternoon, Justice amended a recent State of Emergency declaration to include Barbour, Brooke, Hancock, Marshall, Ohio, Wetzel, and Wood counties because of flooding and ongoing storm-related threats.

“There has to be so much damage before it qualifies,” Manchin said. “I’m going to do all I can to make sure they get all the FEMA relief if they qualify, and I can help them there,” he said.