Dozens found dead and death toll expected to rise

() — Rescue teams searching for missing people in the flood-hit state of Kentucky have been hampered by the devastation left in their wake, unable to access areas left cut off after floodwaters swept away bridges. and flood communities.

And now they are rushing to overcome another hurdle as temperatures soar later in the week, leaving rescue teams and displaced people facing oppressive heat as more than 12,000 customers are still without electricity.

At least 28 people, including four children, have died from widespread flooding last week, Governor Andy Beshear announced Sunday.

The governor told NBC’s “Meet the Press” that he believes recovery teams “are going to find bodies for weeks, many of them swept hundreds of yards, maybe more than a quarter of a mile from where they were last time”.

As he read a breakdown of the dead in each county during a news conference Sunday, Beshear became visibly emotional when he came to the four dead children in Knott County, where 15 people have been found dead.

“It says ‘minor,'” the governor said, looking at the list. “They are boys. The oldest is in second grade,” he said.

The flooding — which swept across roads, destroyed bridges and washed away entire homes — displaced thousands of Kentuckians, according to the governor. He also knocked out vital power, water and road infrastructure, some of which has yet to be restored.

In Perry County, as many as 50 bridges are damaged and inaccessible, according to County Executive Judge Scott Alexander.

“That means there’s someone who lives on the other side or multiple families who live on the other side that we still can’t get to by road,” Alexander said.

The Kentucky State Police continues to actively search for missing residents in multiple counties and is asking families to notify law enforcement if their loved ones are missing.

According to the National Weather Service, there remains a slight risk of excessive rainfall throughout the region this Monday, with isolated flash flooding possible. With the ground already saturated, more rain could bring even more flooding.

Temperatures are then expected to rise, reaching the mid 80s and near 90s this Wednesday and Thursday, according to the weather service, but it will feel much warmer due to humidity. Heat indices — the temperature you feel when heat combines with humidity — are expected to reach as high as 100 degrees Fahrenheit in some places.

As the climate crisis fuels more extreme and frequent weather events, several areas of the US are currently experiencing flash flood risk, including swathes of the desert Southwest, Knoxville, Tennessee, and Tucson, Arizona.

The region desperately needs resources

State authorities are immediately focused on getting food, water and shelter to people who have been forced to flee their homes.

Power outages and storm damage left 22 water systems operating at limited capacity, a Sunday news release from the governor’s office said. More than 60,000 water service connections are without water or under a boil advisory, he said.

Nearly 10,000 customers in the eastern part of the state were still without power as of early Monday, according to PowerOutage.us.

Officials overseeing recovery efforts say bottled water, cleaning supplies and relief fund donations are among the most needed resources as the region works toward short- and long-term recovery. FEMA is providing trailers filled with water to several counties.

“A lot of these places have never been flooded. So if they’ve never been flooded, these people won’t have flood insurance,” Hazard, Kentucky Mayor Donald Mobelini told on Saturday. “If they lose their house, it’s a total loss. There’s not going to be an insurance check coming to help them. We need cash donations,” he said, referring to a relief fund set up by the state.

Beshear established an Eastern Kentucky Flood Relief Fund to pay funeral expenses for flood victims and raise money for those affected by damage. As of Sunday morning, the fund had received more than $1 million in donations, according to the governor.

The federal government has approved relief funds for several counties. FEMA is also accepting individual disaster assistance applications from affected renters and homeowners in Breathitt, Clay, Knott, Letcher and Perry counties, the governor said, noting that he believes more counties will be added to the list as recovery continues. damage assessment.

Communities face irreparable damage

Although the recovery effort was still in the search-and-rescue phase over the weekend, Beshear told a news conference Saturday that he believes losses will be “in the tens, if not hundreds of millions of dollars.”

“This is one of the most devastating and deadly floods that we have seen in our history,” Beshear told NBC on Sunday. “It’s flattened areas where people didn’t have much to begin with.”

And it wasn’t just personal possessions that were swept away by the flood waters. A building that houses archival film and other materials in Whitesburg was affected, and the water submerged an irreplaceable collection of historical film, videotape and audio records documenting Appalachia.

Appalachian film director Mimi Pickering told that the beloved media, arts and education center, Appalshop, kept archival footage and filmstrips dating back to the 1940s, containing the stories and voices of the people of the region. Employees and volunteers scrambled to save whatever material they could.

“We’re working as hard and fast as we can to try and salvage all that material… I don’t think I’ve felt the full impact yet. I don’t think I want to think about it,” Pickering said. He noted that the Smithsonian and other institutions have offered help.

The heavy losses Kentuckians are experiencing will likely have a mental effect as well, Frances Everage, a therapist and 44-year resident of the town of Hazard, told . Although her house was saved, she said some of her friends have damaged houses or lost their entire farms.

“When you put your blood and sweat and tears into something and then see it ripped out in front of your eyes, there’s going to be a grieving process,” Everage said. “This community will rebuild and we’ll be fine, but the impact on mental health is going to be significant.”

‘s Sara Smart, Andy Rose, Lauren Lee, Raja Razek, Mike Valerio, Mark Biello, Cole Higgins, Robert Shackelford, Chris Boyette, Aya Elamroussi, Dakine Andone, Caitlin Kaiser and Tom Sater contributed to this report.