“The Floods That Shook the South: A Week of Rain, Wreckage, and Rising Waters”

Frankfort, Kentucky

What began as a relentless downpour has turned into a historic disaster across the South and Midwest, leaving at least 19 dead and dozens of communities under water. On Monday, as the skies finally dried, the nightmare was just beginning for cities like Frankfort, Kentucky — where rivers are still rising dangerously close to breaching protective flood walls.

“I’ve never seen it this bad in all my 52 years,” said Wendy Quire, manager of the Brown Barrel restaurant downtown, echoing a sentiment felt across the region.

The Kentucky River is expected to crest at a record 49.5 feet — just shy of the city’s 51-foot floodwall limit — marking its highest level since 1978. That year is now back on everyone’s lips, not as a distant memory, but a looming reality.

Over a foot of rain pummeled the region since Wednesday, turning streets into rivers and homes into islands. Memphis, Nashville, and Little Rock all broke rainfall records, while the National Weather Service confirmed over 58 tornadoes since the storms began, including three powerful EF3s.

Tragedy has come in waves — a 9-year-old boy swept away on the way to his school bus, a 5-year-old crushed in Arkansas, and a father and son killed by a falling tree on a Georgia golf course. Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear declared a state of emergency as roads disappeared, homes submerged, and residents scrambled to higher ground.

In places like Falmouth and Butler, mass evacuations were ordered. And in Frankfort, where sandbags and levees are the last line of defense, Mayor Layne Wilkerson imposed an overnight curfew to keep looters at bay and emergency workers focused.

Emergency crews are stretched thin, battling toxic spills, power outages, and historic water levels. Even inland areas like Monterey and Wilmore, far from the Ohio River’s edge, are seeing neighborhoods drowned in brown floodwater.

Kentucky’s roadways are so washed out that state officials ran out of barricades. Inmates in Marshall County are filling sandbags alongside local leaders. In Cincinnati, rescues continue — one woman woke to floodwater in her tent, another driver had to be pulled from their submerged vehicle.

Meanwhile, even the sacred turf of the Masters in Georgia wasn’t spared. The iconic golf tournament delayed its practice round as storms swept the course, turning fairways into lakes.

This isn’t just a storm — it’s a saga. And while the rain may have stopped, the aftermath has only just begun.