Kentucky flooding: At least 16 dead in central Appalachia after ‘devastating’ storm

Kentucky‘s governor said 16 people have died, a toll he expected to grow as the rain keeps falling.“We’ve still got a lot of searching to do,” said Jerry Stacy, the emergency management director in Kentucky ‘s hard-hit Perry County. “We still have missing people.”Powerful floodwaters swallowed towns that hug creeks and streams in Appalachian valleys and hollows, swamping homes and businesses, leaving vehicles in useless piles and crunching runaway equipment and debris against bridges.

Mudslides on steep slopes left many people marooned and without power, making rescues more difficult.Gov. Andy Beshear told The Associated Press before touring the disaster area Friday that the 15 dead in Kentucky includes children, “but I expect that number to more than double, probably even throughout today.”Emergency crews made close to 50 air rescues and hundreds of water rescues on Thursday, and more people still needed help, the governor said. “This is not only an ongoing disaster but an ongoing search and rescue.

The water is not going to crest in some areas until tomorrow.”Determining the number of people unaccounted for is tough with cell service and electricity out across the disaster area, he said: “This is so widespread, it’s a challenge on even local officials to put that number together.” As flood battles continue in Western Canada, here’s a look at what’s happened so far More than 200 people have sought shelter, Beshear said.

He deployed National Guard soldiers to the hardest-hit areas. Three parks set up shelters, and with property damage so extensive, the governor opened an online portal for donations to the victims.