SALYERSVILLE, Ky. (FOX 56) – The sound of backhoes filled the air in Magoffin County over the weekend. It is a sign of recovery for residents like Deputy Judge Executive Kevin Howard.
Howard is a native of Magoffin County and has been traveling eastern Kentucky roads for decades.
Howard said, “I just love the people, love the hills, love the mountains. It is just a great place to live.”
The county experienced mild flooding in July’s historic flooding that swept away homes in eastern Kentucky. The storm system left behind a few dozen roads in Magoffin that were temporarily closed.
Howard continued, “Most of the roads are passable now. We had a few that weren’t the department went out and got those fixed fairly quickly so people can get in and out.”
The Salyersville baseball field will have to be completely redone.
Several residents were also directly impacted by the flooding. Those residents are now getting help from community organizations like Lakefront Church of God.
Jeffery Tackett, the director of the church’s food pantry, has been coordinating assistance since the storm hit.
Tackett said, “We had some homes with minor damage, 10 to 12 inches of water. Cleaning supplies: we have assisted about 50 people. When we did lose water service, we provided showers to several families here.”
The damage Magoffin County saw is minor compared to the loss of homes and lives in bordering counties like Knott and Breathitt.
So now the county is redistributing its resources to help those who need them most. Tackett continued, “Since we do serve part of Breathitt County we knew they were hurting a lot in that direction.”
Lakefront Church has now become a command center for response; transporting supplies and food to flood victims and offering housing for volunteers on the ground indefinitely.
“With the National Guard present we were able to load products such as water and cleaning supplies and they were able to head on over to Breathitt County and we received and they received also,” Tackett added.
