Realtor on impacts of deadly Kentucky flooding

Catastrophic flooding continues to inundate the central U.S. as rivers remain swollen from unprecedented rainfall brought on by a series of deadly storms.

Spanning from Kentucky, Illinois and Ohio to Louisiana and Mississippi, floodwaters are still surging downstream, overwhelming neighborhoods, infrastructure, and emergency response teams.

As of Wednesday, more than 120 locations across the region were at or above flood stage, with about two dozen river gauges registering major flood levels, according to AccuWeather.

In Louisville, Ken., the Ohio River is projected to crest soon, marking one of the top 10 worst floods in the city’s recorded history, USA Today said.

Kentucky alone has reported five storm-related fatalities, more than 140 water rescues, and thousands of power outages. Twenty-two total deaths had been recorded across six states as of Wednesday, several reports stated.

Jen Swendiman, president of the Northern Kentucky Association of Realtors, spoke to HousingWire about dire situations her clients are facing as well as efforts from the real estate industry to provide aid.

“These are 100-year floods that seem to be happening more frequently than 100 years right now,” she said. “So, with that understanding, there are things that we need to change from a flood insurance and flood map perspective.

“I think on a national front, we’re working on advocacy toward policies that might help consumers in the long run during these events, and, of course, flood insurance and keeping that program going. The location of the flooding is changing too, and that needs to be considered.”

Governor says worst is yet to come

Despite some improvement in Kentucky’s capital of Frankfort, Gov. Andy Beshear warned that the crisis is far from over.

He said flooding could worsen in several regions, particularly near Henderson and Owensboro, where the Green, Kentucky, and Ohio rivers continue to rise.

“In our area, northern Kentucky, (water) is receding slowly, we’re seeing waters go down,” Swendiman said. “But further along west in the state, it’s not going to crest for another day. We’ve seen the full gamut of wet basements all the way up to full floods. And we did have one unfortunate fatality in Campbell County.”

In Frankfort, the Kentucky River rose to 48.14 feet on Monday, 17 feet above flood stage and just inches below its all-time record. Streets were completely submerged and homes were left with floodwaters lapping at their porches.

The historic Buffalo Trace Distillery, the oldest continuously operating bourbon distillery in the U.S., was forced to shut its doors due to high water.

“One thing that we do, from an association standpoint on a local, state and national level, is encourage our members to reach out to their clients,” Swendiman said. “Find out what’s going on. Find out what they need. Work with our regional networks within this state to find those hardest hit places where we can coordinate either resources like food, water, and blankets in the near term to longer term.

“That can also be setting up temporary housing opportunities or just helping people, asking them what they need and getting it for them, whatever is required to start the cleanup and stay safe.”

In February, Kentucky dealt with another round of widespread flooding that also led to 20-plus deaths within the state.

How to help

Swendiman encourages those wishing to pitch in to donate to the National Association of Realtors’ Realtor Relief Foundation, which can be accessed here or by texting centralrrf25 to 71777.  

Provided services include up to $1,000 to help with mortgage, rent and immediate displacement in the event of a disaster.

“You don’t have to be a Realtor to donate,” Swendiman said. “(The Realtor Relief Foundation) has actually given residents of the Commonwealth of Kentucky $1.8 million over the last four years to help mitigate clean up getting back on your feet after these flood disasters that we’ve had.”

Multiple forecasts point to another storm system coming to the region.

Beginning Thursday, nearly 30 million residents across Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama, and Georgia will be under a storm threat reportedly including large hail, damaging winds, and even more torrential rain.

“We’re seeing a variety of types of disasters,” Swendiman said. “We’ve got fires in California and elsewhere too. We always kind of think of the west with stuff like that, but actually, the East Coast has had several fires this year. Then there were the hurricanes. It’s not only loss of buildings. In some cases, literally, it’s loss of land. From a policy perspective, do we focus on understanding what those deeds are, where those properties were, or what happens when that property is gone?

“How do we help consumers from a perspective of, ‘Not only is the house gone that you owe a mortgage on, but the land is no longer there?’ Is there relief that we can provide when there’s nothing left? How do we mitigate that on behalf of our consumers? I don’t know the answers, but those are things that we’re talking about.”