Governor Andy Beshear delivered grim news from the Kentucky Emergency Operations Center in Frankfort Monday morning — confirming four dead, and one unnamed man currently fighting for his life, in the wake of Sunday’s storms.
At one point Sunday night near Charleston and Barnsley, Beshear said there was a five-mile swathe where emergency personnel “couldn’t get in,” and that it was a massive undertaking to reach those homes.
The state’s EOC has been upgraded to a Level 3 status, meaning all forms of state response are on high alert, and as of noon Monday, Beshear said there isn’t belief of anyone unaccounted for at this time. However, his office could learn of fatalities or missing persons later, as search and rescue continues across the Commonwealth.
Beshear also reported that Dawson Springs was hit again, less than three years after a deadly EF4 tornado ripped through its downtown district.
As of noon Monday, more than 170,000 Kentuckians were without power. Beshear said parts of Trigg County could be “days without power” because of significant damage to infrastructure; 14 counties and five cities have made a disaster declaration.
In order to allow services to flow throughout the state, Beshear said he has declared a state of emergency for all of Kentucky.
This includes the National Guard, which will be joining with the U.S. Forest Service across west Kentucky and beyond.
Beshear plans to make three stops this afternoon in west Kentucky, in order to survey the damage himself. At 12:20 PM, he will be at Hopkins County Central High School so he can travel to both Barnsley and Charleston. Then, at 2:40 PM, he will be at Beechmont Volunteer Fire Department in Muhlenberg County.
Beshear also noted that Kentucky State Police communications were knocked out Sunday for many of the posts, including Madisonville, and rooms have been opened at Pennyrile Forest State Park for those in need of shelter. No one has checked into these at this time.
As for water infrastructure, Beshear said more than 200 people were still under a boil water advisory in Cadiz, more than 80 in the Lake Barkley District, Dawson Springs has no power and leaks are ongoing due to damage, East Logan has no power and a tank at 70% — good enough for one day — and in Caldwell County, the Treatment Plant is “okay,” but multiple pumps are without power.
Beshear said the biggest damage to roads and highways were trees and power lines, and that the state should be able to qualify for public assistance from FEMA due to this alone.
Director of Transportation Jim Gray said trees were down and high waters could be found in more than 40 counties.
Nearly 100 state highways were impacted, the bulk of them in Paducah, Madisonville and Bowling Green highway districts.
EOC Director Eric Gibson called this another “widespread disaster.”
At the peak of Sunday’s storms, more than 215,000 Kentuckians were without power.
