T-L Photo/Jennifer Compston-Strough Pictured is Long Run along National Road in the Woodsdale section of Wheeling Thursday night after heavy rain fell across the area.

WHEELING — A bout of heavy rains caused another round of flash flooding in the Wheeling area, causing water-logged roads to close and sending emergency crews scrambling to answer a flurry of 911 calls throughout Ohio County.

Local first responders, already flood-weary from the disastrous and deadly flash floods that devastated the area less than two weeks ago, were put on full alert once again as a heavy storm front pounded several neighborhoods just before dusk on Thursday.

“We had another severe thunderstorm come through the city and the county,” said Lou Vargo, director of the Ohio County Homeland Security and Emergency Management Agency. “We received about 2.5 more inches of rain.”

At the same time that emergency calls started pouring in about flooding, a major house fire was also reported on Wheeling Island, Vargo noted.

“There was a house damaged in Bethlehem and several rescues of people in areas throughout the city and the county,” he said. “We just had sporadic calls throughout the city and the county. “The fire department swift water rescue team was activated, and there were several rescues going on. Right now, I’ve not received any reports of injuries.”

Because of the high volume of calls that occurred all at once, first responders throughout Ohio County were put on standby, and many were called into action.

“The county went to an all-hands situation where all county volunteer fire departments were standing at their station ready to respond, and we had several of those responding to incidents throughout the county,” Vargo said.

The flooding Thursday night was not limited to low-lying areas. Many hilltop neighborhoods that were inundated with heavy rains also experienced significant flooding.

“We have multiple roads closed just because the creeks came out of their banks,” Vargo said. “A lot of it was just overflow that the storm sewers just can’t handle.”

Police and fire department officials were dispatched for traffic control around closed roads, including sections of National Road, Bethlehem Boulevard and several other areas.

“Fairmont Avenue was closed very early because water was coming off the hillside,” Vargo noted.

Elm Terrace was also hit hard, as was the shopping plaza on Bethlehem Boulevard, and Vargo said that reports came in that Wheeling Hospital experienced some flooding. Residents that live in Elm Terrace also reported water in basements for the first time in decades. Roads through the neighborhood currently are closed.

According to the Wheeling Police Department, debris and mud washed onto several roads in the city, including National Road in Woodsdale, Elm Street, 29th Street in South Wheeling and areas of Elm Grove. Officials urged motorist to avoid these areas until crews could get the roadways cleared.

Vargo noted that emergency officials kept a close eye on the areas around Triadelphia and Valley Grove, which were are still recovering from the June 14 floods that destroyed much of those neighborhoods. He said some of the emergency calls that were received Thursday night sent crews to those areas.

“Some were from Triadelphia area, so we’re definitely concerns about those areas out there,” Vargo said. “I know Middle Creek was closed because they had water on the roads, and U.S. 40 by Liberty Distributors.”

Many of the initial calls about flooding originated in areas on the hilltops, including Bethlehem. East Bethlehem Boulevard at the intersection with W.Va. 88 was closed around 8 p.m. The Bethlehem Volunteer Fire Department initially shut the road down near the Char House, blocking traffic from traveling toward the Elm Grove section of Wheeling. Water gushed across the road near the Char House.

The closure followed a strong thunderstorm that resulted in the National Weather Service to issue a flash flood warning for Wheeling.

A video posted online by the Silver Rail Bar & Grill on 29th Street in South Wheeling also showed that road covered by water, not far from Mount Zion Cemetery.

There also were reports of roads being flooded and impassable near the Wheeling YMCA and near Uncle Pete’s in Elm Grove.

In the Edgwood neighborhood, Elm Run crested and flooded local roads. There were reports of water in basements as well there.

National Road near the CVS also was closed due to high water.

Flooding was less severe in Belmont County, where water briefly covered roads and scattered debris in the Barton and Bridgeport areas.

According to Bridgeport Assistant Police Chief Darby Copeland, flooding occurred in the areas of Aetnaville, South Lincoln Avenue, Howard Street, Marion Street and U.S. 40 in that community. He said a good deal of debris was left behind when the water receded, adding that several residents also had water in their basements.

Jeff Gazdik, squad captain with the Barton Volunteer Fire Department, said Church Street flooded in that community.

(Jennifer Compston-Strough and John McCabe contributed to this report.)