200 young campers rescued as flooding hits parts of Missouri and Kentucky

Ann DeField is grateful her two sons and their fellow campers are home safe after they were evacuated from a Missouri summer camp that became flooded during severe weather across the central U.S. this week.

Benjamin, 11 years old and Teddy, 9, were among the more than 200 children and counselors who were airlifted from Camp Taum Sauk on Friday in Lesterville, Mo., after the region saw historic rainfall. Eight UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters crewed by about 35 members of the Missouri National Guard rescued them from dangerous floodwaters, according to Gov. Mike Kehoe’s office — flying them to a nearby elementary school where they were reunited with family.

DeField told NPR that her sons were at a week-long camp program for nearly a week when she got texts from other concerned moms on Friday morning about flash flooding at the camp overnight. She said she had also been notified by the camp that children had moved to higher ground and in the afternoon were being evacuated by Black Hawk helicopters.

“It was a whirlwind,” she said. “And my boys, when they got home … I couldn’t hug them long enough.”

She says she and her husband were more panicked than their kids during the incident.

“They were fine,” she said. “They really just thought it was all a big adventure.”

Teddy told NPR the experience was “really, really fun.”

“We got to go on a Black Hawk. It was very loud and very cool and fast,” he said.

The rescue occurred amid serious flooding in other parts of Missouri as well as Kentucky, with emergency workers rescuing stranded motorists.

“Missouri’s first responders once again answered the call with extraordinary bravery, professionalism, and compassion, rescuing hundreds of Missourians from dangerous floodwaters,” Kehoe said in a statement on Friday. “As recovery efforts continue and additional rain is expected, I urge everyone in flood-prone and low-lying areas to stay weather-aware, have multiple ways of receiving alerts, and be ready to take protective action.”

The governor’s office urged people to check forecasts before leaving home and not to drive through flooded areas, noting that more than half of flood deaths in Missouri have historically involved victims trapped in vehicles. Kehoe declared a state of emergency Friday after an overnight storm dropped as much as 12 inches of rain within hours across several counties — which the governor’s office described as “a 1-in-1,000-year rainfall event” in some areas.

Emergency responders also helped those stranded by flooding, including Missouri Task Force 1, which deployed 50 members with rescue boats and special equipment, according to St. Louis Public Radio.

At least one person has died from the flooding in Missouri. Faith Gregory, 23 years old, was found dead Saturday in Huzzah Creek nearly 2 miles from her home, according to the Crawford County Sheriff’s Office. Gregory was swept away by flood waters on Friday morning, according to St. Louis Public Radio.

About 100 miles south of St. Louis, the Black River was forecast to crest at a record level of more than 28 feet near the small town of Annapolis. In both Missouri and Kentucky, the National Weather Service warned that some areas could get over 4 inches of rain into Saturday evening.

“Another round of storms this afternoon into this evening may lead to excessive rainfall and flash flooding,” the NWS office in Paducah, Ky., said on Saturday. “The ground is well saturated across much of the area from recent rains, so rapid runoff is likely to occur in heavy downpours.”

As of Saturday afternoon, large swaths of Kentucky and Missouri, and parts of Indiana, Tennessee and West Virginia, were under a flood watch into Sunday. Kentucky has been battered by severe weather in recent weeks.

Gov. Andy Beshear declared a state of emergency on June 27 in response to “a severe weather system generating multiple periods of heavy rain, thunderstorms, and isolated strong winds.”

At least six people died during that flooding in Kentucky, according to Beshear.

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