Four young siblings were swept from parents’ grip, among victims of Ky. flooding, relative says

Brittany Trejo said that her four young cousins, ranging in age from 1 1/2 to eight, were swept away from their parents’ grip in the deadly Kentucky flooding Thursday.

By 12:30 p.m. Friday, the bodies of all four children had been recovered from the Knott County community of Montgomery, Trejo said.

Gov. Andy Beshear confirmed on Friday afternoon that the bodies of the four children had been recovered.

According to the coroner, at least 14 deaths had been confirmed in Knott County by mid-day Friday.

Trejo said that the home of Amber Smith and Riley Noble in the Montgomery community filled with water Thursday.

“They got on the roof and the entire underneath washed out with them and the children. They managed to get to a tree and ... held the children a few hours before a big tide came and wash them all away at the same time,” Trejo said.

“The mother and father was stranded in the tree for 8 hours before anyone got there to help,” said Trejo.

Amber Smith and Riley Noble, the mother and father, were found alive. The bodies of Riley Jr., 6, and Nevaeh Noble , 4, were recovered, said Trejo. The bodies of Maddison Noble, 8, and Chance Noble, 1 1/2, were found Friday morning, she said.

“The numbers, I think, are going to be really hard to tell right now because some of the people they haven’t got to yet, and I’m sure some of the coroners haven’t been able to report them,” Kentucky State Police spokesman Shane Goodall said.

It’s pretty much impossible to have an exact count at this point due to many missing people, Goodall said, but more deaths are expected once the floodwaters recede. The death toll in the region continued to rise throughout the day Friday.

Police were still rescuing people with helicopters in places no one can get to, Goodall continued.

Later Friday, in Breathitt County, Coroner Hargis Epperson said three bodies had been recovered in the past six or seven hours. He said a dozen more people are missing.

The death toll in Perry County stood at four people as of Friday night, said Jerry Stacy, the county’s emergency management director.

One of the deaths confirmed in Perry County due to the severe flash flooding was an elderly woman, who deputy coroner Jeff Combs said was 82.

According to Combs, the victim, who has not yet been named, drowned in the Coneva community of Perry County. The death was reported around 10:48 a.m. She had reportedly left her house trying to get to higher ground.

The victim went missing around midnight or 1 a.m. Thursday and was discovered around 8 or 9 a.m. Thursday, said Combs. Others are unaccounted for.

In Clay County, Brian Jackson, deputy director of Clay County Emergency Management said law enforcement agencies were responding to two “probable” drowning deaths.

The Mountain Eagle reported at least two people were dead in the Isom area of Letcher County.

This story was originally published July 29, 2022 at 4:27 AM with the headline "Four young siblings were swept from parents’ grip, among victims of Ky. flooding, relative says."