Kentucky is still in the “search and rescue phase” following deadly statewide floods over the weekend, Gov. Andy Beshear said Monday.
The death toll had risen to 12 by Monday evening, Beshear said in a social media post.
The governor traveled Monday to Pike County, saying the mountainous area in far southeastern Kentucky was probably the state’s hardest hit by this latest weather disaster. “We will dig out. We will muck out. We will rebuild every single structure that’s here,” Beshear said at a news conference in Pikeville.
Earlier during a morning press conference at the Kentucky Emergency Operations Center in Frankfort, Beshear said the latest reported deaths include an adult man in Hardin County and another man in Floyd County, bringing the toll to 11.
Beshear did not say where the 12th fatality occurred. The Lexington Herald-Leader reported that Paul Joseph Licato, 65, of Harrison County, was killed after floodwaters likely swept his vehicle off KY 35 in Scott County near Sadieville.
With some rivers still cresting, more severe weather is on the way for Kentucky Tuesday night into Wednesday night. Pooled water is at risk of freezing, leaving black ice on roads while the predicted snow would create challenges for transportation crews already working to clear roads, Beshear said.
Beshear expressed gratitude for local, state and national crews coming to Kentucky to help with emergency response efforts. He said the entire state has standing water in different areas and more than 300 roads were still closed.
“We are still in the search and rescue phase of this emergency,” the governor said. “We still have multiple different missions that are underway. There are still people that are in harm’s way.”
As of Monday morning, 175 National Guard soldiers and airmen were active in Kentucky, including members of the Indiana National Guard. Beshear said additional aviation crews from Indiana and Tennessee are bound for Kentucky. Federal urban search and rescue teams from Indiana, Ohio and Tennessee were also part of operations in Kentucky.
Beshear said two National Guard trucks were overcome by high flood waters in separate missions. While it “got very dangerous for one set of guardsmen,” they are safe. One truck was still underwater and was unrecoverable until waters recede.
Beshear said the state would apply for individual federal assistance on Monday. President Donald Trump had previously approved Beshear’s request for an emergency disaster declaration.
“We now believe that we have enough damage and evidence of enough damage to request that help for our people,” Beshear said. “If we secure it, it will open up immediate need and cleaning and sanitizing money that becomes available pretty quickly to our people.”
After that, applications can open for further individual assistance up to $42,500, the governor said.
While the flooding in Eastern Kentucky was not as devastating as in July 2022 when record rains caused flash flooding, Beshear said daily rainfall records were set in Frankfort, Paducah, Bowling Green, London and Jackson.
“I think we know that climate change is making more weather events happen, but we keep getting hit over and over,” Beshear said in response to a question. “And while the ‘why’ is hard, I think we always see God in the response.
“Good people, brave people, doing the right thing, showing up for their neighbors, hopefully contributing to the Team Kentucky Storm Relief Fund. We’ve got to make sure we’re here for every victim and victim’s family of this storm, but also everybody who’s displaced. They deserve as much of our effort as those that were harmed after the tornadoes or that last set of flooding.” Beshear was referring to deadly tornadoes that tore through Kentucky in December 2021, killing 74 people.The flooding in Eastern Kentucky in 2022 took 45 lives.
Secretary of Transportation Jim Gray emphasized drivers should not enter high water. He said transportation workers are continuing to make road repairs, such as responding to a rockslide on I-69 in Caldwell County, but a “very high” number of road closures remain. To get up to date information about road closures, visit goky.ky.gov.
As of Monday morning, 14,672 people were without power, the governor said.
Some state facilities were also impacted by the weather. Department of Juvenile Justice Community Services offices in Harlan, Pike and Clay counties have been “flooded and they’re inoperable,” Beshear said. The department is looking for temporary office locations.
The main source of water for Breathitt County Juvenile Justice Center has been shut off, affecting the local juvenile detention center. The detention center is using bottled water and looking for portable showers, the governor said. The county expects to get the water back on within three days, “but we know that we’re going to need water a lot quicker than that.”
Monday afternoon, Beshear will travel to Pikeville in Eastern Kentucky and provide another update on the emergency response. Depending on logistics, he may meet with families taking shelter at Jenny Wiley State Resort Park. Across four state parks, 143 people were taking shelter as of the morning update.
Beshear reminded Kentuckians to call 911 only in situations where their life is threatened or are facing an emergency. For non-emergency situations, call 502-607-6665 or visit kyem.ky.gov.
This article is republished under a Creative Commons license from Kentucky Lantern, which is part of States Newsroom, a network of news bureaus supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Kentucky Lantern maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Jamie Lucke for questions: info@kentuckylantern.com. Follow Kentucky Lantern on Facebook and Twitter.
McKenna Horsley covers state politics for the Kentucky Lantern. She previously worked for newspapers in Huntington, West Virginia, and Frankfort, Kentucky. She is from northeastern Kentucky.
