The death toll from the floods in central and eastern Kentucky (USA) rose to fifteen people, according to the governor of that state, Andy Beshear, on Friday.
The governor said that among the deceased there are elderly and “probably children”and warned that this figure will rise and could “be more than double.”
The President of the United States, Joe Biden, announced this morning the declaration of Kentucky as a “major disaster” area to confirm the federal aid that the Government of the country will give to the state to deal with these floods, the White House reported in a statement. .
At dawn this Friday, according to the National Weather Service (NWS), the stretch of the Kentucky River in the city of Jackson reached the highest elevation ever recorded at 13 meters, surpassing a record set in 1939.
Beshear declared a state of emergency throughout Kentucky on Thursday, and today flood warnings remain in effect for most of the region.
Beshear’s order includes the mobilization of troops from the Kentucky National Guard to use trucks and helicopters to help people trapped by the raging waters.
Many people have been trapped by floodwaters on rooftops and in trees, according to local television station WHAS11.
“The death toll continues to grow,” the governor said, “and many families there have lost absolutely everything.”
On Thursday night, Kentucky authorities recommended that the population evacuate their homes around Lake Panbowl, near Jackson due to the rising waters of the Kentucky River and “a mud discharge” observed near the lake’s dam.
Forecasters are forecasting another series of showers for today in the area flooded by torrents that have descended from the mountains and swollen the rivers and streams in Appalachia. The waters that have run amok, damaged bridges and flooded houses, businesses and highways.
In the town of Whitesburg, floodwaters swamped Appalshop, an arts and education center renowned for promoting and preserving the region’s history and culture.
Authorities reported rapid flooding in rivers and streams in eastern Kentucky, western Virginia and southern West Virginia, areas affected by the storms in the last few days.
According to the platform PowerOutage.us, this morning there were 24,157 homes and businesses in Kentucky without power supply, and another 6,789 in the same situation in Virginia.
Jerry Stacy, director of Emergency Management for Perry County in eastern Kentucky, described the flooding as “a catastrophic event.”
“There are flash floods and mudslides almost everywhere,” Stacy noted. (YO)
Source: Eluniverso
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