It has been reported that at least 16 people have been killed and the death toll “is going to get a lot higher” as devastating rainfall continues in eastern Kentucky, Governor Andy Beshear announced in an update Friday.
Eleven of the deaths, which include two children had occurred in Knott County in eastern Kentucky, the governor said.
“To all the families that know you’ve already sustained a loss, we’re going to grieve with you, we’re going to support you and we’re going to be here for you not just today, but tomorrow and in the weeks and the years to come,” Beshear said.
Also Friday, President Joe Biden issued a major disaster declaration in the state and ordered federal aid to be sent to “areas affected by severe storms, flooding, landslides, and mudslides,” according to a news release from the White House.
Beshear said the state made around 50 air rescues and hundreds of boat rescues Thursday. So far, 294 people have been rescued and 337 are in shelters, he added.
“This situation is ongoing,” he said. “We are still in the search and rescue mode and at least in some areas, the water is not going to crest until tomorrow.”
Rescue teams, assisted by the National Guard, were searching Friday for more missing people, according to The Associated Press.
“We’ve got volunteers coming in to help,” Jerry Stacy, the emergency management director in Perry County, told MSNBC. “That’s gonna be our focus, and, you know, we do still have people missing, and we’re doing everything that we can do in our power to find them.”