Search and rescue teams backed by the National Guard searched Friday for people missing in record flooding that wiped out entire communities in some of America’s poorest places. Kentucky authorities said at least 19 people have died, a number the governor said he expected to rise.
Gov. Andy Beshear said 16 people were killed and at least six children were among the victims. After Beshear’s comments, the Breathitt County Coroner told CBS News that three more people died in the flooding.
“This is difficult,” the governor told reporters during a briefing Friday afternoon. “This is even more difficult for these families and these communities, so keep praying. There are still many people, there are still many unaccounted for. We will do everything we can to find them all.”
Beshear said earlier Friday that the death toll “is going to go up a lot.” He said later officials could be updating the death toll “over the coming weeks.”
Powerful floods engulfed towns that hug creeks and streams in Appalachian valleys and hollows, inundating homes and businesses, leaving vehicles in useless piles and crunching runaway equipment and debris against bridges. Mudslides left people on steep slopes and thousands of customers were without power.
“We still have a lot of research to do,” said Jerry Stacy, director of emergency management in Kentucky’s hard-hit Perry County. “We still have missing people.”
Homes along the Gross Loop off KY-15 are flooded with water from the North Fork of the Kentucky River on July 28, 2022. Arden S. Barnes/For The Washington Post via Getty Images
The floodwaters swept through the area so violently and quickly that residents, many still recovering from the latest deluge, barely had time to get out.
“I lost everything, twice,” Dennis Gross told CBS affiliate WKYT-TV. “That makes me lose everything twice, and I’m not the only one.”
Emergency crews made nearly 50 air rescues and hundreds of water rescues Thursday, and even more people needed help, the governor said. “This is not just an ongoing disaster, but an ongoing search and rescue. The water won’t rise in some areas until tomorrow.”
Determining the number of people missing is difficult with cell service and electricity in the disaster area, he said: “This is so widespread that it’s a challenge even for local officials to put that number together.”
More than 290 people have sought shelter, Beshear said. He deployed National Guard soldiers to the most affected areas. Three parks set up shelters, and with property damage so extensive, the governor opened an online portal for donations to victims. President Biden called to express his support for what will be a long recovery effort, said Beshear, who predicted it will take more than a year to fully rebuild.
“It’s the worst we’ve had in a long time,” Breathitt County Emergency Management Director Chris Friley told WKYT-TV. “It’s all over the county again. There are several places that are not yet accessible to rescue crews.”
Perry County dispatchers told WKYT-TV that floodwaters swept away roads and bridges and knocked homes off their foundations. The city of Hazard said rescue crews were out all night and urged people on Facebook to stay off the roads and “pray for a break in the rain.”
Mr. Biden also declared a federal disaster to direct relief money to more than a dozen Kentucky counties, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency appointed an official to coordinate the recovery.
Beshear had planned to tour the disaster area on Friday, but postponed it because conditions at an airport where they planned to land are unsafe, his office said. He saw the flood later in the day aboard a helicopter. He tweeted that “the situation is even more devastating to see firsthand” and said it will be “a long road to recovery.”
I’m in eastern Kentucky today and the situation is even more devastating to see firsthand. Please help our families – this will be a long road to recovery. Donate now at pic.twitter.com/TlryGoZAUt
— Gov. Andy Beshear (@GovAndyBeshear) July 29, 2022
More rain lashed the region on Friday after days of torrential rain. The storm sent water pouring down hillsides and out of creek beds, flooding roads and forcing rescue teams to use helicopters and boats to reach those trapped. Flooding also damaged parts of western Virginia and southern West Virginia, a region where poverty is endemic.
“There are hundreds of families that have lost everything,” Beshear said. “And a lot of these families didn’t have much to begin with. And so it hurts even more. But we’ll be there.”
Poweroutage.us reported that more than 31,000 customers were without power as of Friday evening in eastern Kentucky, West Virginia and Virginia, with most of the outages in Kentucky.
Van Jackson checks on his dog, Jack, who was stranded in a church by floodwaters after a day of heavy rain in Garrett, Ky., July 28, 2022. Pat McDonogh/USA Today Network via Reuters
Rescue crews also worked in Virginia and West Virginia to reach people in places where roads were impassable. Gov. Jim Justice declared a state of emergency in six West Virginia counties where flooding downed trees, caused power outages and blocked roads. Governor Glenn Youngkin also issued an emergency declaration, allowing Virginia to mobilize resources to flooded areas in southwest Virginia.
“With more rain expected in the coming days, we want to lean forward to provide as many resources as possible to help those affected,” Youngkin said in a statement.
The National Weather Service said Friday that another storm front adding misery to flood victims in St. Louis, Missouri, could bring more storms to the Appalachians early next week.
Rain continues as Kentucky flood waters recede at 12:54 AM
Brandon Bonds, a meteorologist with the weather service in Jackson, Ky., said the hardest-hit areas of eastern Kentucky received 8 to 10 1/2 inches during a 48-hour period that ended Thursday. Some areas got more rain overnight, including Martin County, which was hit with another 3 inches or so that prompted a new flash flood warning on Friday.
The North Fork of the Kentucky River rose to break records in at least two places. A river gauge read 20.9 feet in Whitesburg, more than 6 feet over the previous record, and the river reached a record 43.5 feet in Jackson, Bonds said.
Krystal Holbrook had enough Thursday as her family raced through the night to move vehicles, RVs, trailers and equipment as rapidly rising waters threatened Jackson. “The higher ground is becoming a little difficult” to find, he said.
In Whitesburg, Kentucky, floodwaters seeped into Appalshop, an arts and education center recognized for promoting and preserving the region’s history and culture.
“We’re not exactly sure of the total damage because we haven’t been able to safely enter the building or get too close,” said Meredith Scalos, its director of communications. “We know that some of our archival materials have left the building and onto the streets of Whitesburg.”
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