Gloucester and Mathews counties “dodged a bullet” over the weekend as Hurricane Matthew made its way up the East Coast. Emergency officials in both counties reported only minimal storm-related issues and said this area fared much better than the Hampton Roads cities to our south.

“We had lots of rain and the high tide was a little higher than normal,” said Gloucester’s emergency services coordinator Creig Moore. “We only sustained moderate (tidal) flooding.” 

The area began seeing heavy rainfall Saturday afternoon and through the night, as well as gusty winds, which continued through Monday as the storm made its way offshore. 

Moore said Gloucester residents experienced minor road flooding in the usual areas that see water over the roads during storms such as Guinea loop, Severn Wharf Road, etc.

“Our problems pretty well stopped when the wind came through on Saturday,” Moore said. He said the county received anywhere f...