Death Toll Rises to at Least 25 in Historic Kentucky Flooding
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As the water continues to rise in Kentucky, tragically so does the death toll.
In an update posted on Facebook Saturday morning, Governor Andy Beshear reported that 25 fatalities had so far been confirmed in the historic flooding, thanks to continued heavy rainfall in the eastern region of the state.
"We are in search and rescue mode, but that count is going to continue to go up," Beshear said ominously about the rising death toll.
A number of infrastructural issues are also affecting the region, making it difficult for rescue teams to communicate and access some of the worst hit communities, Beshear added Saturday.
"As it gets hot this next week, that could create its own emergency," he continued while announcing that cooling centers would be set up for residents who are without power or water – or whose water is now unsafe to drink.
"Three drinking water systems are totally out at the moment," Beshear added frankly.
In the press conference on Saturday, Beshear also praised first responders for working in the torrential downpours and detailed the successful air rescue of more than 400 people by the Kentucky National Guard, 224 rescues by air units of the Tennessee National Guard, and 36 air rescues by the West Virginia National Guard.
The Kentucky National Guard had also rescued 19 people and 2 dogs by boat, while the Kentucky State Police had made 624 water rescues, added Beshear. The Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife had made 125 rescues by boat, he continued.
While the Kentucky governor described a rain stoppage on Saturday morning as a positive development, plenty of challenges remain. According to poweroutage.us, around 17,000 households across Kentucky were without power early Saturday morning, meaning that many communities have lost both electricity and cell phone service.
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Authorities expect the death toll to keep rising as rescue efforts continue across the state's rugged hills and hard-to-reach valleys. Particularly, as further rain is forecast for Sunday.
Despite this, Beshear emphasized that residents can continue to reach out to their county lines to report missing loved ones, which can also be found on the State Police's website.
A state of emergency was declared in Kentucky Thursday, and the National Guard was activated to assist with rescue and containment efforts. Unfortunately, loss has already been felt among residents, with four children tragically among the dead, reported the Lexington Herald-Leader Friday.
Speaking with the newspaper, Brittany Trejo said that her young cousins, who were between the ages of 1 and 8, were swept away from their parents on Thursday.
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Trejo told the newspaper that as water inundated their home, their parents — identified by Trejo as Amber Smith and Riley Noble, both of whom survived — "got on the roof" and "managed to get to a tree."
"[They] held the children a few hours before a big tide came and wash[ed] them all away at the same time," Trejo said, according to the outlet.
The flooding — which in some areas is not expected to crest until Saturday — has also caused extensive property damage and left thousands without power, according to The Washington Post. On Friday, President Joe Biden issued a disaster declaration.
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This week, both Kentucky and Missouri — where one person died in St. Louis — were hit by 1,000-year rain events, according to The Washington Post.
However, experts say that due to the climate crisis, extreme precipitation events may become more common.
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"There are many ways that climate change can cause floods," NPR climate team member Rebecca Hersher explained on Friday's Morning Edition episode.
"The kind of devastating heavy rain that we've seen this week is something that climate scientists have predicted for many decades — that, as humans keep burning fossil fuels, the atmosphere gets hotter, the air holds more moisture and so, when it rains, it rains harder," Hersher added.
