"This has been a tough nine or ten days, I know, for a lot of people out there, and we are hoping that the federal government comes through for us," Gov. Andy Beshear said Monday. "But I promise you, at the state level we will work as hard as we can to help everybody get back up on their feet."
It's a promise Beshear is all-too-familiar with — committing to restoration efforts in the wake of a major disaster, one that has now taken at least 22 lives including a Marshall County man who died of hypothermia.
Currently, 253 people are housed in state parks. And while the state has moved on from a rescue to a stabilization phase, Kentucky Emergency Management Director Eric Gibson says the scope of the flooding is becoming clearer.
"Damage assessments are coming in. Our numbers are just continuing to rise as we see the number of households, businesses, and communities, and all the infrastructure that goes along with that, are more impacted than we may have even first thought," he said during the latest briefing.
That's led the governor to make a trip to the White House to urge action on an emergency disaster declaration that would open the door for individual assistance.
"It was provided after the tornadoes, after the floods, and after a couple of other natural disasters, (when) I think the overall impact (was) less than this one," Beshear noted.
That said, Beshear said that damage from those events was so heavily concentrated that it didn't take long to convince federal emergency officials that the state should receive the disaster declaration. This flooding is more spread out, meaning that it's taking more time to assess.
The acting FEMA administrator is expected to visit Kentucky on Tuesday.
Right now, a major concern is clearing mounting debris and getting basic supplies to those affected. Kentuckians are being encouraged to donate at teamkystormrelieffund.ky.gov.