Flooding displaces families and damages homes in eastern Kentucky

In Harlan County overnight into September 22, first responders rescued people from flooded homes, according to Judge-Executive Dan Mosley in Christopher Leach’s reporting for AOL. Residents had to leave homes in Coxton, Brookside and Ages (1 on the map), WATE reported in coverage republished by AOL.

Earlier that afternoon, the weather service issued a severe-thunderstorm warning for Boyd County at 4:57 p.m. The severe-storm warnings continued into the night, with the last one ending in Bell County at 12:30 a.m. Eastern time. Those warnings describe the storm activity; the accounts of rescues and damage come from reporting on the ground.

During the overnight Harlan County flood, responders went door to door to alert residents to the approaching danger, Mosley told KET’s Kentucky Edition. WATE reported that people left their homes after a flash-flood warning was issued for the affected communities.

The water extensively damaged homes, vehicles, roads, bridges, culverts and water lines in Coxton, Brookside and Ages, according to Mosley’s account carried by WATE. He told KET that water entered homes and basements, mud and debris accumulated in yards, and rocks tumbled down a mountainside into a home.

No deaths or injuries were reported in the sources reviewed for this flood. Speaking to KET on September 22, Mosley said: "We're just thankful that there was no loss of life." His office had already connected some residents with assistance that day, KET reported.

In Harlan County after the overnight flood, Kentucky American Water crews and contractors restored water service to approximately 200 homes within 50 hours, Underground Infrastructure reported. The work repaired damage to Black Mountain Utility District infrastructure while families faced the cleanup of flooded homes.

This was recovery from the same flood, not a separate disaster. Flash-flood warnings began in Pike County on September 21; that night, a Harlan County warning classified the potential damage as considerable. The flood-warning area is marked 2 on the map.

Floodwater had ripped water lines from the ground in Ages and Brookside. In its September 25 report, Underground Infrastructure described crews replacing damaged mains and service lines while Kentucky American Water supplied bottled water. Restoring service addressed an immediate household need, but it did not remove the mud and debris left behind.

By September 23, all Harlan County roads were back open, Mosley said in WYMT’s reporting. Volunteers delivered cleaning supplies to distribution sites, including Ages Community Park, and Subway provided sandwiches for people cleaning flooded homes.

No deaths or injuries were reported in the sources reviewed for this flood. As far as the record shows, no one was hurt, but Sean Daniels of Harlan Mission Outreach told WYMT on September 23: "they have a long road ahead of them to clean up, so they need a lot of prayer".

In Bell County at 3:30 p.m. Eastern time on September 23, the weather service issued a flash-flood warning that also covered neighboring counties. Cedar News reported that the notice described flooding as ongoing or expected shortly. This was a later episode, distinct from the overnight flood that had displaced Harlan County families earlier in the week.

That evening, south-central Harlan County came under a flash-flood warning at 10:01 p.m. The weather service named Martins Fork, Smith and Bobs Creek among the locations covered, according to the notice archived by Claims Pages. This later flooding area is marked 3 on the map.

In part of Leslie County, conditions had improved by 10:16 p.m. The weather service announced that a flood advisory had expired and that floodwaters had receded, according to its notice archived by Iowa Environmental Mesonet. It still advised people to observe remaining road closures, without identifying individual roads.

Nearby, the picture remained different. At 11:03 p.m., the weather service extended a flash-flood warning for northeastern Bell County, west-central Harlan County and southwestern Leslie County until 12:15 a.m. the next morning. The notice, archived by Claims Pages, said flooding impacts would continue even though no additional rainfall was expected.

The last flash-flood warning in this episode ended in Harlan County at 12:56 a.m. Eastern time on September 24. These notices did not document additional damage or rescues. No deaths or injuries were reported in the sources reviewed for this later episode.

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