‘Life has changed for everybody’: Letcher Countians reflect on July flood six months later

WYMT Mountain News Weekend Edition newscast at 6 p.m. on Saturday
Published: Jan. 28, 2023 at 4:34 PM EST

WHITESBURG, Ky. (WYMT) - Water now sits below the creek banks, but the mental replay of it so many feet higher has changed perspectives.

“Life has changed for everybody. Don’t take nothing for granted. Stuff is just stuff. Your life is more important,” Letcher County firefighter Wallace Bolling Jr. said.

Separating life from destroyed items has not been easy for a lot of flood survivors.

It was picking up each other that is helping them through the grieving process.

“The kindness that people showed up with is what really sticks out. I’ve tried to move past all the devastation that happened, and really at this point I can focus on all the help we received,” Letcher County artist Lacy Hale said.

Even through all of the destruction, packing up and moving outside of the region was not on Lacy’s list for recovery.

“I think sometimes that my work is for a specific community, and that community is here,” Hale said.

Nor is that the mission for Bolling, a man who grew up in a firehouse and plans to rebuild the Letcher County Volunteer Fire Department that the flood washed through.

“We’re gonna rebirth our new fire department here starting next week. We’re doing funding basically on our own, with some insurance. Hopefully we’ll be back better than we ever were,” Bolling said.

Wallace Bolling Jr. also said they are taking donations through their Facebook page. You can also call (606) 633-8058.