FRANKFORT, Ky. (LEX 18) — More than 500 homes in Franklin County were invaded by the Kentucky River during historic flooding last April. But in some places, homes were also affected by land movement.
At that time, it was a difficult task to tell someone they weren't allowed in their own home. But that’s what Autumn Goderwis, the planning director for Franklin County, had to do because of landslides.
“We marked some of these structures as unsafe because that land had started to move, and we were seeing that those structures had the potential to slide... That was a really challenging day for sure to be there, as these people were trying to get back in their homes and start the cleanup process and saying, ‘hang on, maybe these may not be safe,'" she said.
“One of our catastrophic events happened at Big Eddy,” Tina Peck, the senior planner and floodplain administrator said. “The slope movement was devastating. I believe it took out six homes there.”
LEX 18 visited residents who lived in the area over the spring and summer. Both Goderwis and Peck interacted with residents as well, and they now are working on ways to protect against future landslides.
“As a planner and flood plan administrator, our job is to protect the people and reduce risk,” Peck added.
Upon request, the Kentucky Geological Survey visited an area around Big Eddy Road last Wednesday.
“It's really important for people to be aware of the land around them, especially in landslide-prone parts of the state,” said geologist Matt Crawford. “We can, at the KGS, we can provide that information.”
The Kentucky Geological Survey keeps track of documented landslides, which does include a handful in Frankfort.
“There's landslides along Big Eddy Road here quite often,” he said, showing a map. “This is where we visited with the Franklin County officials and looked at. You can kind of see the roughness in the bank.”
Wednesday’s visit allowed Crawford and his team to get a closer look at the Big Eddy slide and give some more information to county officials.
“I think they were interested in these landslides and why they looked the way they did and how they occur,” Crawford added.
While Peck and Goderwis await a full report from Crawford and his team, they already have some ideas on where to go next.
“I'm looking into hopefully getting grants in the future for bank stabilization in this area,” Peck said.
Goderwis added that they are “really trying to protect those banks and encourage vegetation, because that really helps to stabilize those surfaces.”
Franklin County is working with the federal government for a buyout program as well, and people in the Big Eddy area along the Kentucky River have been given the option to voluntarily participate. Goderwis clarified that any land the county receives from the buyout would not be able to be built upon.
“We will be looking into planting trees and other vegetation on sites most likely, and then sort of developing a long term goal for what the county might use that land for,” she said.
That program is voluntary, and Goderwis said 36 properties have opted to participate to this point.
