Governor Andy Beshear reported on Thursday that flooding in eastern Kentucky has resulted in at least eight fatalities; the number is predicted to rise to double digits as the water level continues to rise.
Beshear, who on Thursday morning declared a state of emergency in six counties, said a series of storms drenching the eastern part of the state have dropped water that has yet to crest, leaving damage that could take years to repair.
In his emergency declaration, Beshear stated, “We are currently experiencing one of the worst, most devastating flooding events in Kentucky’s history.
There will be “hundreds of home losses.”
An 81-year-old woman from Perry County was one of the fatalities.
The governor wrote on Twitter that the disaster was still ongoing and that more rain was predicted for tonight.
23,000 homes were left without electricity due to the flooding, and “a few people” were still missing, he claimed.
In videos published by local media, roads appeared to be rivers, with water as high as the leaves of the trees nearby and power poles sticking up from the greenish-brown water.
According to Beshear, the state activated the national guard and the state police to use boats and helicopters to rescue people stranded in floodwaters.
State parks and other facilities were used as evacuation centers, but Beshear cautioned that some of them had been severely damaged by the storms and might not have power or certain amenities.
Trucks will be bringing in drinking water because it will be difficult to find fresh water in some areas of the flooded region, he said.
According to the National Weather Service, there was a 40% chance that the hard-hit area around the city of Hazard in the Appalachian foothills of Cumberland Mountain would experience more intense rain and storms through the night on Thursday and an 80% chance on Friday.
