Water Damage Restoration in Shepherdsville, KY

SHEPHERDSVILLE, Ky. — The Salt River in Shepherdsville has receded enough for residents and business owners to begin mucking out.

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As soon as water levels dropped low enough on Thursday, April 10, Pastor Nathan Young and his Mercy Hill congregation went to work. Everything tainted by flood waters must go or be thoroughly cleaned.

“Over the next few days we’ll get all the drywall torn out, insulation, cabinetry, flooring,” Young said.

By Thursday morning the Salt River receded within a few feet of Mercy Hill’s front door, enough for volunteers to push out the water still inside.

“You get somebody’s house or a basement, it’s just such a mess,” one volunteer said.

Their mission is to move fast and avoid problems with mold. At the same time Pastor Young can’t help but think of his neighbors affected by the destructive flooding.

“We’ve had people from our own congregation that have been rescued by boat. Yeah, it’s definitely hard to see. But this is an opportunity for us to be the Church and be reminded that the church is really not a building. It’s a family,” Young said.

A block away from Mercy Hill, “Brush and Balance” opened their storefront to help collect donated cleaning supplies. The business only had a few inches of water in the front of building that was cleaned out on Wednesday, April 9. The water was deeper in the back of the building and in storefronts next door.

A few steps away, Shepherdsville Fire Department power washed the street to clear away the mud and silt left behind.

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SHEPHERDSVILLE, Ky. (WAVE) - Before the floods along the path of the Salt River, the Journey Christian Church in Shepherdsville was making plans to welcome visitors to its Easter Sunday services. Now it is welcoming an outpouring of assistance.

“We have people from other churches in the building right now,” Pastor Jeremy Willis said. “We have people from the community, Lowe’s has been helpful, Sunbelt Rentals. We’ve had all kinds of people from around here reaching out, offering their help whether that’s manpower, equipment, food, whatever it is. It’s been really overwhelming in a positive way to see everybody reach back out to us.”

On this day, the sounds of demolition filled busy hallways, as water-logged pieces of the church interior were carried away by the wheelbarrow load.

“It was very overwhelming at first as you just kind of walk into the building,” Willis said, “and yesterday, maybe more overwhelming as it starts to kind of get ripped up. But just the work we put into this over the years, it was kind of hard to see that.”

The goal right now is to remove everything touched by the nearly 2 feet of flood waters that covered the ground floor. The flooring and dry wall removal will be followed by treatments to prevent mold.

“So we’re doing all the efforts that we can,” building supervisor David Williams said, “to spray the contaminated areas, even uncontaminated areas, so that way no mold ever has an opportunity to grow here at journey.”

Those efforts are bolstered by volunteers from other churches. Andrea Bradshaw, a member of the Field of Grace Baptist Church, came from Lebanon Junction to help.

“It’s devastating,” Bradshaw said. “I mean, seeing it on the TV is one thing, but actually being here in person and seeing all the damage, it’s just heartbreaking. It truly is.”

One part of the building not hurt by floods was the sanctuary. Getting the rest of the building back in shape could take a month or more. Work is also underway to find an alternate location where the congregation can gather.

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SHPERDSVILLE, Ky. — The Salt River is expected to crest Monday as much as 5 feet above flood stage.

What You Need To Know

By 10 a.m. Sunday, Lyn Coy had seen enough. The rising river is now only a few feet from the law office where she works.

“It’s coming up fast,” Coy said.

Coy has enlisted help from friends and neighbors to help clear out computers and files and other important materials. At the same time, she’s checking in on her next-door neighbors on Plum Street.

“Next door here, I’ve made sure they’ve got somewhere they are going," Coy said. "The house right next behind us is empty."

Flood water is already in the backyard of Desiray Davis’s home while nearby businesses on Buckman Street are already surrounded by water.

“Really the plan is just to, I guess, leave the house, leave everything in it," Davis said. "We didn’t prepare like we should have, unfortunately."

Davis said she's never seen water as high as it was on Sunday while longtime residents refer to the 1997 flood as the "worst in a generation" for the area.

Several neighborhoods in Shepherdsville are at risk of being waterlogged by the time river levels reach their peak. A member of the National Guard said they helped with one water rescue late Sunday morning at a residence near Hensley Road where several dozen homes are situated adjacent to the Salt River.

“I mean, I’ve checked on a few people, but everybody is doing good," resident Nathan Jackson said. "They knew when to get out when they had the chance."

Those closest to the water are measuring time in feet per hour.

“Everyone, please be safe," Coy said. "Don’t take chances. There’s not a thing worth losing your life."

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BULLITT COUNTY, Ky. —

A barn in Bullitt County was practically ripped in half by Sunday night's intense storms.

It was confirmed Monday afternoon that at least an EF1 tornado hit Lebanon Junction, just south of Shepherdsville.

WLKY's Addie Meiners caught up with someone who lives at a barn there on Beech Grove Road. Luckily, he wasn't hurt.

"I mean, it's, I guess all you can do is feel grateful... it's a loss, but I just kinda feel grateful," Justin Parsley said.

There were also eight horses in the barn at the time, as well as his dog, Radar.

"My first thought is, 'We got to check on the animals.' ... Once I found the animals were OK, It was just kind of overwhelming. It's just hard to believe it happened," Parsley said.

Several tornado warnings issued during Sunday night's powerful storms

He said the storm sounded like a freight train.

"It felt like it lasted 3 or 4 minutes, but in reality probably 30 seconds," Parsley said.

The tornado that ripped through that area had wind speeds estimated to be more than 100 mph.

Trees along Beech Grove were snapped in half.

"There's parts of the [barn] probably a mile away, you can tell because of the color of the metal and the insulation that's on it," said Parsley. "It's crazy, just crazy."

Parsley says he and his step brother, who owns the property and lives in another home on it, stored their trucks and horse trailers inside the barn earlier Sunday night. They were trying to avoid damage from the storm's forecasted hail.

Parsley believes they should be able to salvage the trucks.

The part of the barn that sustained the most damage was used for storage. Parsley said it was built a little over 10 years ago.

To learn more about the tornadoes that hit Sunday night, read more here.

SHEPHERDSVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Floodwaters in Bullitt County, Kentucky, left widespread damage after the Salt River crested early Monday morning.

Floodwaters inundated streets, homes and properties across the area, with many areas submerged for the first time in years.

In downtown Shepherdsville, much of the street is covered by floodwater. Residents are forced to deal with rising water levels that began after several days of heavy rainfall. While the river crested this morning, local officials said it will take time for conditions to improve.

Kristie Lyons, a local resident, described how her front yard now resembles something closer to a pond or river.

"Lots of flooding. Lots of flooding. We haven't seen it come up like this before," Lyons said. Her yard, typically dry, is now submerged.

"Earlier yesterday morning, you could see grass and we could see our driveway. As the day went on, it just kept coming up," Lyons added.

The flooding has affected many other parts of the county, like Highway 44, west of Shepherdsville.

Crystal Sandoval was hoping to deliver mail on her typical postal route Monday but was forced to turn around when she saw that a particular section of 44 was completely covered with water.

"We can't get down there at all," Sandoval said. "It sucks. I'm sure there are people upset about not getting packages, but we're doing what we can do. My regular that runs this route, she lives right over there, and she's flooded in to where she can't even get here today. She's over off Wilderness and it's completely flooded.”

From Highway 44 and Shepherdsville to Lebanon Junction, the flooding is as bad as it's been since 1997.

The threat of how high the water might get over the weekend forced county leaders to evacuate the Bullitt County Detention Center.

According to Jailer Bryan Whittaker, 252 inmates were transported from the jail to detention centers in Hardin County, Grayson County, Nelson County and the Louisville Metro Department Corrections.

Luckily, water never entered the facility, and the inmates will be brought back once officials determine it's safe.

“It'll take a few days for the water level to drop, but as it does drop, we'll start seeing more roadways back open," said Jon Waters, deputy director of Bullitt County Emergency Management.

Luckily, no one was hurt in Bullitt County. Emergency Management, with help from the National Guard, completed nearly 100 water rescues over the course of the weekend.

"Makes you anxious," Waters added. "You know, I'm from Lebanon Junction, and so seeing that area be hit as hard as it was, makes you worried about, you know, your hometown, but I knew it was in good hands."

Until the water level recedes enough for cleanup efforts to begin, Bullitt County residents are just glad to be OK.

"We were kind of getting a little scared, me and my son, but today it's just relief," Lyons said.

Some Bullitt County families did choose to evacuate their homes, and a few schools were opened as shelters. The Red Cross has been providing support.

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