Area schools collecting items for Kentucky tornado victims
By TONY FYFFE
BSN Editor
School districts in the Big Sandy region are collecting various items to send to Western Kentucky residents affected by Friday night’s deadly tornadoes in Western Kentucky.
The Lawrence County, Johnson County, Paintsville Independent, Floyd County and Martin County school systems are accepting donations of water, shoes, socks, coats, garbage bags, shelf food, cleaning supplies, non-perishables, etc.
All items collected through the “Pack a Bus” project will be accepted at local schools, but each district is collecting specific items, including cleaning supplies in Lawrence County, water in Johnson County, toys and blankets at Paintsville Independent, blankets in Floyd County, and non-perishable food items and toiletries in Martin County.
All donated items will be loaded onto school buses and sent to tornado victims in Western and Central Kentucky on Monday, Dec. 20.
Appalachia Reach Out of Inez is also collecting supplies for tornado victims through the Operation Love Kentucky project. Organization spokesman Dwayne Mills said top-priority items include generators, kerosene heaters, extension cords, gas cans, flashlights and batteries.
Also needed are towels and wash clothes (mobile showers will be available), gift cards to Walmart, hand soap, body soap, tooth paste, tooth brushes, shampoo, deodorants, lotions, wipes, toilet paper, plastic ware, diapers, garbage bags, paper towels, toilet paper; socks, underwear, kids gloves, adult gloves, toboggans, shoes (all sizes) and coats.
Gov. Andy Beshear said in a Monday morning news conference that at least four tornadoes touched down in Kentucky Friday night, including one that was on the ground for more than 200 miles.
Beshear, who said it was the worst tornado event in the state’s history, said there were 64 confirmed deaths as of Monday, including 20 in Graves County, 13 in Hopkins County, 11 in Muhlenberg County, 12 in Warren County, four in Caldwell County, and one each in Marshall, Taylor, Fulton and Lyon counties.
Ages of those killed in the tornadoes range from 5 months to 86 years; at least six were younger than 18.
In an update Monday night, the number of fatalities increased to 74, with one tornado-related death in Graves County, four in Hopkins County, three iun Warren County and one in Franklin County.
A total of 105 people remained unaccounted for Monday morning, with the number increasing to 109 by Monday night, Beshear said.
President Joe Biden on Sunday declared a major disaster in Kentucky and ordered federal aid to supplement state and local recovery efforts in the areas affected. The declaration makes federal funding available to affected individuals in Caldwell, Fulton, Graves, Hopkins, Marshall, Muhlenberg, Taylor and Warren counties.
The governor ordered flags to be flown at half-staff through next Monday evening in honor of those lost and impacted.
Beshear also announced the creation of the Team Western Kentucky Tornado Relief Fund, which will provide $5,000 to each victim’s family for funeral expenses. To learn more about the fund, visit TeamWKYReliefFund.ky.gov.