Cumberland County is dealing with the aftermath of ten inches of rain in a 24-hour period. The Burkesville region had no injuries or fatalities from the weekend flooding, but experienced major damage to residential and business property.
Cumberland County is one of many areas of Kentucky dealing with extreme flooding from the weekend.
Some areas around Burkesville received as much as ten inches of rain in a 24-hour period, leading to rescues from homes and cars, mud and rock slides, washed out roads and bridges, property damage, and lost livestock.
Judge-Executive Luke King told WKU Public Radio that it’s the worst flooding he’s seen in the 33 years he’s lived in Cumberland County.
“We’ve got roads that in my lifetime that I’ve never seen damaged," King said. "I’ve never seen the one stoplight we have in town with a foot or more of water standing underneath that stoplight.”
Some customers of the Cumberland County Water District were placed under a boil water advisory on Monday. Flooding ruptured a main line, creating the potential for bacterial contamination of the water supply.
King has declared a local state of emergency. He said it’s too early to conduct damage assessments because many areas remain impassable.
Cumberland County is receiving manpower and equipment from other communities, including help from Warren, Daviess, Russell, and Whitley counties.
King said dump trucks and operators are some of the most pressing needs right now, as the county looks to haul in rock needed to repair damaged roads.
As the cleanup begins, the fiscal court met in special session on Monday to sign off on providing dumpsters at the Cumberland County Annex for citizens needing to dispose of damaged personal property.
The sheriff’s department says it’s received reports of trespassers rummaging through items outside of the homes of flood victims. In a statement on social media, the agency said it won’t tolerate theft.
Multiple Kentucky counties were hit with record amounts of rain in a short time Friday through Sunday. Gov. Andy Beshear's office says he plans to request both Public and Individual Assistance from the federal government.
