Boone Countians have been deployed to the cleanup operation in the wake of catastrophic flooding that struck eastern Kentucky.
At least 37 people have died since heavy rains brought devastating floods to the area. The storms that rolled in in late July dropped more than 10 inches of rain within 48 hours. The National Weather Service said flooding remains a threat, warning of more thunderstorms through Thursday.
After the flooding on July 26, Mike Wilson was among the Kentucky Army National Guard companies and a group of local officials sent to provide aid to the impacted families.
Wilson, a lieutenant for the Kentucky National Guard and a Boone County Public Works supervisor, went to Wolfe County, which shares part of the Red River Gorge park and geological area. For part of his five-day mission, he was sent to a high school gym. A picture Wilson captured shows the basketball court lined with army green cots to house dozens of families with nowhere else to go.
“It’s very emotional seeing the displaced families living in the high school with nothing more than just a garbage bag of stuff,” he said.
Part of his mission was to report the condition of roads, security, water, power, and communication.
More photos show sunken roads, bridges and entire homes washed away by murky flood water.
Wilson called it “total devastation.”
Kevin Vogelpohl, Boone County’s deputy director of emergency management, was a key dispatcher of local resources to aid the eastern region of the state. Vogelpohl was also on hand for the tornadoes that struck Mayfield, Kentucky in December, where there is still a cleanup operation nine months after an EF-4 tornado struck. Like Mayfield, he indicated these flooded communities will need years to recuperate.
“It’s going to be a lengthy process. A lot of the areas where there are destroyed houses and parts of houses are very inaccessible because of the mountainous terrain and the geography of the area,” he said. “There are creeks that are going to have to be dredged out, the mud and debris deposited on the streets will have to be removed to make it passable again, the sanitary sewer systems are having to be dug out and rebuilt, so it is going to be a very lengthy process.”
A longtime veteran of the fire service, Vogelpohl retired in 2019 from the Florence Fire Department. Vogelpohl said the destruction seen now is similar to that witnessed in the 1997 floods that left 80% of Falmouth underwater.
Vogelpohl said people in eastern Kentucky were trapped due to collapsed bridges and blocked driveways, so water rescue crews from Boone County, including land rescue crews from Covington, Hebron, Alexandria, and Union were deployed for water and land-based searches “for 12 and 14 hours a day” over the course of six days. Also sent from Northern Kentucky were emergency response crew members from Campbell, Grant, Kenton, and Pendleton counties, he said.
He added that the services provided went beyond search, rescue and debris clearing. Crews delivered food, water, and critical supplies for people trapped in their homes without electricity.
Days after the storms that caused the floods, the region was hit with intense heat, causing the government to open cooling shelters for people without electricity to stay cool.
“The infrastructure down there was damaged so badly that it’s going to be weeks before a lot of the electric utilities will be fully operational,” Vogelpohl said. “As water lines were brought back on, there were breaks in the lines that were found because of the amount of flooding that went on so badly damaged the infrastructure. The delivery of bottled water and food to these people who were not able to leave their houses was key.”
Despite the circumstances and the damage done, Wilson found hope while on mission in the flooded region.
“As I drive around, it was encouraging to see people just grilling out and handing out water to volunteers, soldiers or displaced people,” Wilson said.
As demonstrated by the months-long cleanup effort in Mayfield, areas impacted by flooding will need more than just a few weeks to reset.
Vogelpohl said anyone interested in lending a hand as a volunteer or donor can find a list of needs at governor.ky.gov/flood-resources.
“There are multiple ways that people can help, whether it’s distributing water, helping with the cleanup process, working in a shelter, or just collecting donations,” Vogelpohl said. “One of the big things that we always try to tell people is when you have these kinds of disasters, money and gift cards are the best things that can go around, because these people have lost everything and they can go and rebuild their lives.
“It’s very hard to find a place to put a lot of stuff, especially in an area where things have been damaged and destroyed,” he said.
Items from water bottles to diapers and callouts for volunteers can be found on the governor’s page. Volunteers are coordinated through groups established in the flood zone, and Vogelpohl said it’s the best way people able and willing to help can get their marching orders.
