It’s all hands-on deck at the Wendell H. Ford Regional Airport outside of Hazard.
The United States Army is scouring the area from the air, looking for survivors from this week’s deadly floods. The challenge is they are at times being sent to locations to search for people who are missing, but it’s hard to pinpoint an address when the homes are no longer there.
The last load brought a group of 13, the youngest was a toddler, the oldest had difficulty walking and was using an oxygen tank. They had been stranded since Thursday morning. Wet, cold and clearly in shock, volunteers get them food, water and dry clothes.
They’re helped onto a bus and taken to local churches that have been turned into shelters.
Anthony Mullins is the Senior Pastor at County Line Community Church. As we talk, another Army Blackhawk flies overhead, bringing more survivors that will soon be at the church.
"We're going to be distributing water, cleaning supplies, and other necessary items, providing hot meals. We've got other entities that are coming, ministries that are coming up to do food trucks and provide meals. Some of the phone companies are going to be here to provide WiFi and things that people don't have right now. Then we're doing drive-throughs, pick-ups, delivering to other shelters," Mullins says.
And while Mullins greets each new survivor that arrives, he prays the one will be his missing family member.
"I have an aunt that got swept away in the water that we still haven't found, so it's personal for me. I've got 14 people staying at my house that don't have homes now. So it's rough, but we're doing what we can and we're doing to be positive, and we're going to come back stronger and help each other," he says.
Mullins says the people here don’t need an influx of donated clothing or home goods. The immediate needs are food, water, cleaning supplies and gift cards so that they can purchase what they need. Another way you can help is to give at , 100% of the proceeds will go towards helping flood victims in central Appalachia.
Friday brought a heartbreaking update from Gov. Andy Beshear, who got an aerial view of the devastation. He said the known death toll now exceeds 20, and that includes six children.
"We have two in our official number. I believe we found four more, and it's going to grow from there. From everything we've seen, we may be updating the count of how many we lost for the next several weeks."Gov. Andy Beshear
The governor said the state is marshalling support from the National Guard, Kentucky State Police, FEMA, and surrounding states as the emergency continues to unfold.
Hear a report from our reporter on the ground, Karyn Czar, in the link above.
"It's a dynamic situation. Search and rescue is still ongoing," he warned. "We weren't able to reach parts of Eastern Kentucky where the water hasn't even crested."
Residents who need to report a missing person in the flooded areas are being asked to call Kentucky State Police Posts. A full list is below. Anyone interested in helping is being encouraged to donate to a relief fund at TeamEKYFloodReliefFund.ky.gov.
Rescuers are working around the clock to reach stranded individuals.
"FEMA has brought in additional search and rescue teams to support the amazing efforts that are already ongoing on the ground," FEMA's Deanne Criswell reported Friday.
Officials are also warning residents not to take any chances as they await assistance and to heed any warnings to leave, as the situation evolves on the ground.
"Please pay attention to your local officials. Listen to the words that they're telling you. Listen to the evacuation orders," Criswell added. "There are still so many hazards that are out there."
Criswell said, for those who can, it’s good to begin documenting the damage to help guide assistance and relief efforts in the weeks and months to come.
- If you need to report a missing person in the counties of Breathitt, Perry, Knott, Letcher or Leslie, contact Post 13 in Hazard at 606-435-6069.
- If you need to report a missing person in the counties of Magoffin, Johnson, Martin, Floyd, or Pike, contact Post 9 in Pikeville at 606-433-7711.
- If you need to report a missing person in the counties of Jackson, Owsley, or Lee, contact Post 7 in Richmond at 859-623-2404.
- If you need to report a missing person in the counties of Wolfe or Morgan, contact Post 8 in Morehead at 606-784-4127.
- If you need to report a missing person in Harlan County, contact Post 10 in Harlan at 606-573-3131.
If phone lines are busy, officials urge people to send an email to ksppubaff@ky.gov and include the following information:
- Your name (first, last)
- Your phone number
- Missing person’s name (first, last)
- Missing person’s home county
- Missing person’s description (gender, age, race, etc.)
- Missing person’s home address and phone number
