Kentucky flooding and cold weather death toll rises to 22; FEMA to tour damage
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — The death toll from widespread flooding and extreme weather that battered Kentucky earlier this month has increased to 22, officials announced Monday.
The latest confirmed death is a man who died of hypothermia in Marshall County, located in southwestern Kentucky, Gov. Andy Beshear said during a Monday morning update. The announcement follows six additional deaths that were reported over the weekend, according to the Louisville Courier-Journal, part of the Paste BN Network.
"This has been a painful, difficult disaster," Beshear said Monday. "There aren't many natural disasters where we lose 22 people. After the widespread flooding in 2022 and the tornadoes in 2021, this is one of the most deadly disasters certainly since I've been governor."
The state was hit hard by flooding from a powerful storm that brought heavy rain and strong winds to the Southeast during the weekend of Feb. 14. Much of the central and east U.S. was also under cold weather advisories last week when an arctic blast plunged temperatures to record lows.
The severe weather caused widespread power outages, evacuations, water rescues, and left more than two dozen people dead across several states, including Kentucky, West Virginia, and Georgia. Beshear previously described the storm as "one of most serious weather events" the state has seen in a decade.
In 2022, communities in central and eastern Kentucky saw historic flooding after heavy rains swelled rivers and creeks. More than 40 people died as a result of the storms and "health conditions directly arising from flooding," The Courier-Journal reported at the time.
Kentucky death toll rises to 22 after major flooding
In separate announcements Friday and Saturday, Beshear said six adults from Warren, Pike, Caldwell, Ohio, Morgan, and Logan counties were killed due to the recent severe weather.
Other deaths in the state included two people in Jefferson County who were believed to have been homeless, according to Beshear. The victims "appeared to have died from hypothermia," Beshear said at a Feb. 18 news conference.
Hart County Coroner Anthony Roberts told The Courier-Journal that a mother and her 7-year-old child died were found in a submerged vehicle on Feb. 15 in Bonnieville, a community about 66 miles south of Louisville. Another death was reported that same day in south-central Kentucky, according to the Hart County Coroner's Office.
Kentucky State Police Trooper Katan Parker said William Rutledge, 59, was killed in a single-vehicle crash on Interstate 65 near Cave City. A preliminary investigation revealed the pickup truck Rutledge drove went off the roadway and overturned amid severe weather conditions.
The Clay County Coroner's Office also confirmed a death on Feb. 15. Donald Keith Nicholson, 73, of Manchester, died as evacuations in the county began that day, according to authorities.
'This is how Kentucky bands together'
On Monday, Beshear said the Team Kentucky Storm Relief Fund — established to help residents impacted by the flooding and will help cover funeral costs — currently sits at more than $300,000. In an update Monday afternoon, Beshear said President Donald Trump and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem approved public assistance to "help our families for the first 10 Kentucky counties affected by flooding."
Beshear attended a National Governors Association meeting at the White House Friday to advocate for Kentucky and storm relief funding. A team with the Federal Emergency Management Agency remains at the Kentucky Emergency Response Center in Frankfort and FEMA Administrator Cameron Hamilton will tour damaged areas on Tuesday.
Roughly 60% of the resource 460 resource requests made to Emergency Operations have been completed, Beshear said. Most requests have come from east Kentucky counties, including Breathitt, Floyd, Knott, Martin, Perry and Pike, as the commonwealth moves into the stabilization phase of the storm relief.
Nearly 90 Kentucky highways remain closed due to flooding, mud, and rock slides, and the National Guard continues to clear debris in counties like Pike and Martin.
"This is how Kentucky bands together and I couldn't be prouder of the local and the state response, doing everything that we can and hoping that we'll see the federal government come through and add to this team to help people, especially during this stabilization phase," Beshear said.
Contributing: Christopher Cann, Paste BN; Rob Byers and Lucas Aulbach, Louisville Courier Journal