At least 10 people have died this weekend after a powerful storm battered the much of the Southeast, bring strong winds, heavy rains and devastating flooding.
Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear confirmed that nine people were killed after floodwaters started sweeping across the state. Emergency responders also conducted more than 1,000 rescues, Beshear said.
Beshear initially reported that at least eight people had died during a news briefing Sunday afternoon, noting that he believed the number of the deaths would grow.
Another death was also reported in Georgia early Sunday. One person was killed in Atlanta after an uprooted tree fell on a home, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.
Almost 100 million Americans were under weather alerts, watches and warnings Sunday as a wall of bitter cold air swept across much of the nation’s northern tier while wild storms prompted water rescues and tornado warnings across the South. At least 700,000 homes and businesses were without power by Sunday night from New York to Alabama due to heavy rains and high winds, according to poweroutage.us.
Flooding has inundated a swath of Southern states over the past 48 hours after more than 6 inches of rain fell in some areas.
In Kentucky, the National Weather Service said the Louisville area had been slammed with more than 6 inches of rain, resulting in widespread flooding. Louisville Metro Police said its river patrol and swift water rescue teams were assisting area fire departments with high water aid.
“The rivers are still going to rise,” Eric Gibson, director of the Kentucky Division of Emergency Management, said Sunday. “We continue to see that the levels down the Kentucky River, the Green River, still have a ways to go before they hit the crest.”
Beshear said the White House had approved his request for an emergency disaster declaration for the historic flooding. The Federal Emergency Management Agency also arrived in Kentucky on Sunday and were currently working to respond where needed, Beshear said.
“From mudslides in the east to snow in the west, the situation is dangerous,” Beshear said.
‘Life-threatening’ floods hit Kentucky, Tennessee, Virginia as powerful storm brings downpours
Developments:
◾ In Virginia, the Richlands Police Department said multiple areas of the town had flooded and urged some residents to evacuate. The Clinch River was beginning to recede Sunday, but “flash flooding and earth/rock slides will be a real possibility,” police said in a statement.
In Tennessee, Macon County Emergency Services said 52 residents of Palace Nursing Home in Red Boiling Springs were evacuated because of rising waters. Meanwhile, the city of Clarksville near the Kentucky border remained on alert Sunday as floodwaters continued to rise from runoffs as fire crews rescued people from flooded homes and streets, the Nashville Tennessean, part of the USA TODAY Network, reported.
◾ Waters in Pikeville, Kentucky were receding by Sunday evening, but plenty of work remains in the county that Beshear said was probably hit hardest in state. Officials said at least 100 rescues had been reported in the county since about 3 p.m. local time Saturday and several water tanks were currently dry after their lines were broken during the storm.
◾ Mutual aid teams from other parts of the South arrived Sunday to provide assistance throughout east Kentucky, according to officials. North Carolina Emergency Management said crews of 40 to 60 people will be dispatched to the hardest-hit areas. Crews from Ohio and Indiana are also expected to arrive in the coming days, officials said.
