At least 37 dead in Kentucky floods, according to new balance sheet

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At least 37 people have died in the severe flooding that has affected the US state of Kentucky in recent days, the state’s governor, Andy Beshear, revealed Monday, insisting that the final death toll may rise as floodwaters recede from flooded areas.

“We are ending the day with more heartbreaking news from eastern Kentucky. We can confirm that the death toll has now risen to 37, with many more still missing. Let’s pray for these families and come together to wrap our arms around our fellow Kentuckians,” Beshear has expressed on his Twitter account.

The bodies are being moved to Frankfort, where a refrigerated truck has been set up to preserve the bodies because the morgue is overflowing, the governor said.

Besehar has also warned that there are many people who “only have the clothes on their backs” so he has encouraged anyone in need in the five designated counties to seek help from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). “FEMA people are on their way,” he stressed.

Also, the U.S. state governor has called attention to storms that could hit the region overnight Monday, stressing the danger of overnight flooding.

“Please, if you are in an area that has experienced flooding, seek shelter on higher ground or in a building. Be aware of the weather and stay safe,” Besehar has urged Kentuckians.

Meanwhile, recovery work continues and telephone service has already been restored in part of the affected areas, reports local television station WLEX-TV. However, other infrastructures such as bridges and roads will take longer to be restored, explained the governor, who has ordered flags to be flown at half-mast for a week.

Beshear has also announced that he is canceling his planned trip to Israel to deal with the emergency, as rescuers will continue to work for several more days.

Many areas are without water and electricity supplies and thunderstorms continue. Increased temperatures and even more difficult conditions for rescue efforts are expected in the coming days. So far, 1,432 people have been rescued across the state, according to the latest assessment by state authorities.

Breathitt, Clay, Floyd, Johnson, Knott, Leslie, Letcher, Magoffin, Martin, Owsley, Perry, Pike and Wolfe counties have been hardest hit by this flooding and will be the first to receive federal aid under this declaration.

Rescue efforts, CNN reports, have been hampered due to ongoing power outages that began Wednesday, at the onset of the flooding, and have continued into the early morning hours.

Kentucky thus becomes the scene of its second weather catastrophe in just over seven months, following the wave of tornadoes that swept through the state in December of last year and left 74 dead.