Kentucky flooding: Death toll rises to 26, governor confirms

FRANKFORT, Ky. — Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear on Saturday confirmed that 25 people have died so far after heavy rains caused severe flooding across five counties in the eastern part of the state.

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Update 12:35 p.m. EDT July 31: In a tweet Sunday morning, Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear revised the death toll from the flooding to 26 people.

More rains hit the eastern part of the state as residents continued to cope with floodwaters that destroyed homes and claimed lives across five counties.

USA Today reported that excessive runoff from showers and thunderstorms Sunday and Monday could result in the flooding of rivers, creeks and streams in central and eastern Kentucky. According to the National Weather Service, rainfall of up to 2 inches an hour could cause flash flooding, especially in areas experiencing more thunderstorms.

Two people from the community of Bullskin in Clay County have been identified by Deputy Coroner Joe Crockett, the Lexington Herald-Leader reported.

Walter Hinkle, 76, was “washed out of his house,” Crockett said. Brenda Webb, 81, died “when the floodwaters went right through her house.”

Original report: Speaking at a news conference on Saturday, Beshear revised the death toll to include four children, rather than six, among the fatalities. The governor said that two people originally reported as children were adults.

“That number (of total deaths) will continue to grow and to be refined,” Beshear said. “Remember, we don’t have cell service in some areas so please be patient as we get new information or if it changes.”

The governor said during his news conference that the Kentucky National Guard had rescued 404 people by aircraft. He added that rescue efforts by National Guard units assisting from Tennessee and West Virginia had rescued 224 and 36 people, respectively.

Beshear, who flew over parts of the flood-stricken region on Friday, described it as “just total devastation, the likes of which we have never seen.”

“We are committed to a full rebuilding effort to get these folks back on their feet,” Beshear said. “But for now, we’re just praying that we don’t lose anybody else.”

The hardest-hit area so far has been Knott County, WKYT-TV reported. The Knott County coroner said 14 bodies have been recovered, including four children.

Three deaths were reported in Perry County, two in Letcher County and two in Clay County, according to the television station. The Breathitt County coroner is reporting four deaths.

In Breathitt County, Coroner Hargis Epperson said three bodies had been recovered in the past six or seven hours. He said a dozen more people are missing. “There could be more,” Breathitt County Coroner Hargis Epperson told the Lexington Herald-Leader. “We just don’t know. There’s areas that we still can’t access.”

Beshear said that President Joe Biden signed a federal disaster declaration on Friday, a day after the governor declared a state of emergency.

“To everyone in Eastern Kentucky, we are going to be there for you today, and in the weeks, months and years ahead,” Beshear said.

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Photos: Kentucky flooding Aerial view of homes submerged under flood waters from the North Fork of the Kentucky River in Jackson, Kentucky, on July 28, 2022. (LEANDRO LOZADA/AFP via Getty Images)

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