Flash flooding caused by torrential rain has killed at least 15 people in eastern Kentucky and the death toll is expected to double, the state governor said Friday.
“It’s devastating. Our number of Kentuckians lost is now 15 and is expected to more than double. And that will include some children,” Gov. Andy Beshear told CNN.
He said hundreds of people had been rescued by boats and there had been about 50 air rescues by helicopters deployed by the National Guard.
“There’s a lot of flooding in eastern Kentucky, but we’ve never seen anything like this,” Beshear said.
“People who do it for a living and who have been doing it for 20 years have never seen water that high.”
Some areas reported more than 20 centimeters of rain in 24 hours.
The water level of the North Fork of the Kentucky River near Whitesburg rose to an amazing 20 feet, well above its previous record of 14.7 feet.
#Kentucky #flood #victims #doubling #expected #governor