Protesters storm stage during forum with West Virginia senators

SHEPHERDSTOWN, W.Va. (WOWK) — It was a dramatic night at Shepherd University in the eastern panhandle as protesters briefly shouted down West Virginia’s two U.S. senators. Fortunately, no one got hurt.

More than a dozen protesters took the stage at Shepherd University Thursday night, disrupting the “Beyond Pepperoni Rolls” forum with U.S. Senators Joe Manchin (I) and Shelley Moore Capito (R). The forum was moderated by MetroNews “Talkline” host Hoppy Kercheval.

The group is concerned about climate change, and its belief that both West Virginia senators are still too supportive of the fossil fuel industry. Campus police came to the stage and cleared the protesters.

“West Virginians are dying while you rake in fossil fuel profits. How dare you?” shouted one of the demonstrators.

No one was injured, but this is a recurring problem for the senators.

“Let me explain. Those are what they call climate defiers, okay? It’s a radical group. They won’t even come and sit and talk to me. They don’t want to talk about anything of what we have, and what we have to have. We have to have energy to run this country while we invest in energy we want for the future,” Manchin said.

“They came after me one time in Washington. Same sort of things, and I tried to talk and reason with them like we do as West Virginians, as Joe said. Asking questions as they were upset about the MVP Pipeline. It was the same group, but this was the topic they brought up,” Capito said.

No one was arrested, and no damage was done to the building at Shepherd University. We are told this was an outside group, and no Shepherd students or staff were involved in the protest.

After the dust-up, the forum resumed. Both senators are OK, as is Kercheval.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to DC News Now | Washington, DC.