How officials, ‘everyday heroes’ are supporting recovery efforts in Kentucky

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• Judy Woodruff:

  And for a closer look at how officials in Kentucky are dealing with all of this, let's turn to the state's lieutenant governor, Jacqueline Coleman. And she joins us from Frankfort.

  Ms. Coleman, thank you very much for joining us. We are so sorry for the loss of life in your state.

• Lt. Gov. Jacqueline Coleman (D-KY):

  Judy, thank you so much for having me and for shedding light on the damage that's been done here in Kentucky.

  And I have to tell you that I have been out in the counties that have been devastated. And the only thing that comes close to rivaling the devastation that we are seeing is the sense of community that we see from neighbors helping neighbors, help coming in from across the state, and, honestly, help coming in from across the country. And it's something that I want everyone to know that we will never forget.

• Judy Woodruff:

  I know you have to be so grateful for that.

  Give us a sense of where things stand, now that we're, what, 72 hours, roughly from when these tornadoes hit.

• Lt. Gov. Jacqueline Coleman:

  Yes.

  So, what I have to say is our Governor Beshear is a swift, steadfast, compassionate leader. And that has shown through the last two years as we got through COVID. But, certainly, it is apparent now. He immediately declared a state of emergency, was on the phone with the president. And the president declared a national state of emergency in as quick a turnaround as any of us have ever seen.

  And so this is what you want to see when you know that your friends and loved ones and fellow Kentuckians are in need, is that government is acting and showing up for them. And so, at this point, we have operationalized about 440 National Guards men and women to the area.

  We have set up a fund and raised over $4 million so far to help victims of the storm damage. And I will give you that Web site. It is teamwkyrelieffund.ky.gov. And I want to ask, if your viewers feel compelled and wonder how they can help, that is a great way to help us to get resources on the ground.

• Judy Woodruff:

  Right.

  We heard from my colleague William Brangham about the devastation there in Mayfield and in Dawson Springs. For people who don't know Western Kentucky, where this has hit so badly, give us a sense of what you have seen, what you know is on the ground, what people are going through there.

• Lt. Gov. Jacqueline Coleman:

  It — honestly, it's hard to put into words, when you see the destruction and you think of homes and shelter, and it's mid-December.

  And beyond that, I'm a mother, and I think about how Christmas is two weeks away and what's going to happen to kids and families as their traditions are tragically going to have to change this year.

  But what I can tell you is, what we're seeing on the ground is neighbors helping neighbors. I was actually in Taylor County this morning. Taylor County is not Western Kentucky, but 70 homes were destroyed in Taylor County. And when I was there, a gentleman — the wife of a gentleman who was pulling his neighbors out from under the rubble at night was telling me the story how he left his home once the storm cleared and yelled for his neighbors.

  The house had caved in on top of them. They were in their basement. And he was physically pulling them out. He did it to two or three of the surrounding homes. And come to find out he's the bus driver for the local school district.

  And so it is our everyday heroes that are showing up for people. And they're saving people's lives. And that's what's happening on the ground here.

• Judy Woodruff:

  That has to be so heartening.

  And my colleague William Brangham, something he said to us struck me. And he said that it appears that the early warnings that people had, even though the time was not that long, did make a difference.

  Is that your sense of — that that's the case as well?

• Lt. Gov. Jacqueline Coleman:

  I will say that some of the reports that I have heard from folks who live in far West Kentucky were absolutely lauding their local weather men and women and weather services for the fact that they were helping those folks to stay ahead of this, and providing all of the information through every portal of communication that they had to make sure that people had a warning.

• Judy Woodruff:

  And is there — I mean, at this early stage, Lieutenant Governor Coleman, is there a sense of what you want to do the next time there's a — is there something more that you know the state needs to do, whether it's reinforcing buildings or improving the warning systems?

  What is your sense of that?

• Lt. Gov. Jacqueline Coleman:

  I have to be honest with you.

  At this moment, what our number one focus and priority is, is trying to find folks who are unaccounted for. And so, as the days pass, and we take one step at a time and one day at a time, you can believe that we're going to be evaluating decisions that were made, and structural damage that we see, and learning from those things.

  But, right now, our focus is certainly on returning folks to their families and helping families grieve who have lost loved ones. This is a layered approach, right? And then we start to clean up, and then we start to rebuild. And then we start to look at long-term supports.

  And I want folks to know that we are in this for the long haul. This is not something that's going to be easy. It's not something that's going to be quick, but it is something that I know that Governor Beshear is committed to being in for the long haul.

• Judy Woodruff:

  Completely understandable that those are the priorities.

  We understand, right now, over 100 people still unaccounted for.

  Lieutenant Governor Jacqueline Coleman, thank you very much. And we wish you the best as you work to find all these people.

• Lt. Gov. Jacqueline Coleman:

  Thank you so much.