Who are Amber Smith and Riley Noble? Kentucky couple’s 4 children swept away in CATASTROPHIC flood
Four children in Kentucky are among the latest victims of the state's historic flooding, which has left some areas completely underwater. A family was left completely devastated after they were swept away from their parents' hands in the flood. Amber Smith and Riley Noble lost their four children, Maddison, 8, Riley Jr, 6, Nevaeh, 4, and Chance, who is 18 months old when trying to get to safety during Kentucky's flash flood, according to Amber's cousin, Brittany Trejo. The children's bodies were recovered at about 12:30 pm on Friday, July 29.
"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, according to Kentucky.com. "The mother and father were stranded in the tree for eight hours before anyone got there to help." A GoFundMe campaign has so far raised a little under $34,000 for funeral expenses.
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In a Friday briefing, Kentucky Gov Andy Beshear said the death toll as a result of the flooding has reached 16 people and said that the number is expected to rise. Although there is no official number, many Kentuckians are presumed to be missing after their houses had been destroyed. There have been "around 50 air rescues and hundreds of boat rescues," said Governor Andy Beshear. The governor declared a state of emergency and the State National Guard was deployed due to the damage of the flood.
President Biden has also approved Beshear's request for a disaster declaration in Kentucky. He tweeted, "I spoke with Governor Beshear and Senator McConnell today to offer the full support of the federal government to the people of Kentucky in response to the devastating flooding". "This federal funding is critical for our recovery efforts and Kentuckians impacted by the historic flooding," Beshear tweeted.
I spoke with Governor Beshear and Senator McConnell today to offer the full support of the federal government to the people of Kentucky in response to the devastating flooding.
— President Biden (@POTUS) July 29, 2022
If the flooding has forced you to evacuate your home, find shelter here: https://t.co/pStOq3cOp1 pic.twitter.com/5PGgR3qSrN
.@POTUS has approved my initial request for a disaster declaration in Kentucky. This is great, much-needed news for Eastern Kentucky. This federal funding is critical for our recovery efforts and Kentuckians impacted by the historic flooding.
— Governor Andy Beshear (@GovAndyBeshear) July 29, 2022
Kentucky State Police spokesman Shane Goodall told The Herald-Leader "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." He added, "And I'm sure some of the coroners haven't been able to report them."
In the wee hours of Thursday, Amber Nickles watched her home disappear. As Nickles and her fiancé looked on in horror from a small apartment over their garage, the two saw the main house on their Hindman, Kentucky property get lifted off of its foundation and sail down a swollen creek on ferocious floodwaters. “My elderly mother, who had major surgery last week, was inside,” Nickles told The Daily Beast on Friday. “And so were my two older brothers, who are 56 and 58… One of them is physically and emotionally handicapped.” The house eventually came to rest about 400 feet away, Nickles’ soon-to-be husband, videogame developer Marc Wyzomirski, said from the perch above the garage, where he and Nickles continue to shelter in place.