There is plenty of credit to go around in the wake of the violent storms that roared through West Virginia the evening of June 29.

Incredibly, an estimated 1.4 million of the state’s 1.8 million residents were without power at some point, and for thousands the outage lasted more than a week.

Within hours, a state of emergency was declared by Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin and President Barack Obama.

Power crews worked 16 or more hours a day in sweltering weather conditions to restore electric service as quickly as possible. Volunteers sprung into action. Water and ice, so critical because of the weather conditions, were distributed free of charge. Neighbors were quick to assist members of their communities.

The response to such widespread emergencies, though, can always be better. Preparedness is vital.

That’s why we salute Tomblin’s announcement on Wednesday, while thousands of state residents were still without electricity or water service, that a review of how West Virginia responded to the storms would be conducted.

The review, the governor said, will involve state agencies, county and local emergency management offices, 911 centers and the National Guard. It will also include utilities, hospitals, nursing homes and volunteer groups.

“I want to be sure we learn from this experience, and that we are prepared should the state ever face an even greater emergency in the future,” Tomblin said, noting that “our state has been faced with unprecedented power outages and damage during the past two weeks.”

Tomblin said there were problems with communications, compounded by the power outages, and logistics for the distribution of supplies, such as generators, that need to be addressed throughout the state.

Homeland Security and Emergency Management Director Jimmy Gianato will oversee the review along with National Guard Major Gen. James Hoyer and Peter Markham, Tomblin’s general counsel.

Numerous West Virginians have gone through tough times in the past two weeks. Officials blamed the storms, which tore through six states and Washington, D.C., and their aftermath for 26 deaths. One person was killed in West Virginia, when a man riding an all-terrain vehicle in the dark struck a fallen tree.

Hoyer said state and federal emergency officials handed out 9.5 million bottles of water and 400,000 prepackaged meals. The latter figure does not include hot meals served by the National Guard, Red Cross and others, Hoyer added.

“Regarding those significant life-safety issues, overall we feel comfortable that we did well,” Hoyer told The Associated Press. “We supported the citizens well, but there are always areas where we can do better.”

Such areas include compiling a list of the size and type of generators that each Public Service District needs to maintain water service, Hoyer said.

“If there are things that can reduce stress on our citizens, we want to look at that,” he said.

A major problem at the Fairmont water plant was narrowly averted in the storm’s aftermath. David Sago, the city’s utilities manager, said it took 35 hours and five minutes to restore power to the pumps that feed water into the plant. The reservoir dipped so low that the Fairmont Fire Department had to bring in a pumper truck in order to get to the water nearer to the bottom of the pool. Sago said if it had taken 90 more minutes to restore power, the plant would not have been able to make water.

Steps are in place to ensure this problem doesn’t strike again. An updating plan includes a generator for the pump station. The project will go out to bid in August, and the generator should be online within six months.

Cooling stations in Marion County were available but limited. The American Red Cross set them up at the Marion County Rescue Squad Fairmont and Mannington sites. The Fairmont site could accommodate about 120 persons, Mannington about 60.

That’s an issue that should be addressed looking toward the future.

It’s impossible to protect against everything when Mother Nature strikes. Preparedness — from the state and federal levels to our individual homes — can go a long way in minimizing disruptions and helping everyone move back toward normal as quickly as possible.

Two weeks after West Virginia was slammed so hard, we appreciate all efforts to ensure an even better response the next time an emergency situation must be faced.