July 31 (Reuters) – Flooding caused by torrential rains in eastern Kentucky has killed at least 28 people, including four children, Governor Andy Beshear said on Sunday as authorities worked to provide food and shelter to thousands of residents displaced
Some homes in the worst-hit areas were swept away after days of heavy rain that Beshear described as some of the worst in the state’s history. Rescue teams guided motorboats through residential and commercial areas in search of victims.
“Everything is gone. Like, everything is gone. The whole office is gone,” one of the flood victims, Rachel Patton, told WCHS TV. Around him, the houses were half submerged in water.
Sign up now for FREE, unlimited access to Reuters.com
Sign up
“We had to swim outside, and it was cold. It was over my head, so yeah. It was scary.”
Officials warn that the death toll may continue to rise with more rain expected that could hamper rescue efforts. The National Weather Service is forecasting several rounds of showers and thunderstorms through Tuesday, with a flash flood watch in effect through Monday morning across southern and eastern Kentucky.
Kentucky National Guard helicopter crew members carry a flood victim during their deployment in response to a declared state of emergency in eastern Kentucky, U.S., July 27, 2022. Guard US Army National/Handout via REUTERS
Read more
“We remain focused on meeting the immediate needs of providing food, water and shelter to thousands of our fellow Kentuckians who have been displaced by this catastrophic flooding,” Beshear said in a statement.
Beshear, who declared a flood emergency, earlier told NBC that authorities “will be finding bodies for weeks” as rescuers spread to more remote areas.
The flooding was the second major national disaster to hit Kentucky in seven months, following a swarm of tornadoes that claimed nearly 80 lives in the western part of the state in December. Read more
President Joe Biden declared a major disaster in Kentucky on Friday, allowing federal funds to be allocated to the state. Beshear’s office said affected residents could begin applying for disaster assistance to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
Power lines were heavily damaged, with more than 14,000 reported outages as of Sunday afternoon, according to PowerOutage.US.
Sign up now for FREE, unlimited access to Reuters.com
Sign up
Reporting by Kanishka Singh and Rami Ayyub in Washington; Editing by Hugh Lawson, Lisa Shumaker and Sandra Maler
Our standards: the Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.