Woman who called for help later found dead in Kentucky flooding; homes, cars destroyed

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Saturday, July 31, 2021
'Everything was gone': KY flooding destroys homes, cars; 1 dead
"When we walked in the house everything was gone," one flooding victim said.

NICHOLAS COUNTY, Ky. -- A woman was found dead in Carlisle, Kentucky after a flash flood early Friday morning.



Multiple families on one street said water was at least 4-feet high in their homes, WKYT reported.



Deborah Richie, 66, was found by the Carlisle and Nicholas County, Kentucky firefighters.



Her body was floating 600 feet away from her home.



Carlisle police got a call from a distressed Richie before she was found. Emergency responders hurried to try and rescue her, but unfortunately they were too late.



Marty Day now has a backyard underwater, but he said it was his Yorkie who came to the rescue.



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"She started barking and raising all kinds of Cain in the back; my wife gets up, and then she comes back in and says 'we're flooded.' She was the one that saved us probably," Day said.



Day explained cars were floating down the street. He said he couldn't get out of his back door.



"Someone finally showed up with a boat, and come and got us out of the house," Day said.



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Debbie Hunt has lived in the area for 43 years.



"When we walked in the house everything was gone," she said. "And I've not seen anything like this ever."



Hunt, who cares for her two grandchildren, said she's lost everything. Even her car floated away.



"I don't get nowhere to go, you know; I got no car. So I'm just devastated, and it will be a year ago tomorrow I lost my grandson, so on top of all that -- feel sort of defeated right now, and I don't know what to do, you know," she said.



Nicholas County has declared a local state of emergency.



A National Guard armory is open for anyone needing shelter.

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