>> This is a big deal.

>> Governor Andy Beshear says FEMA is making some changes.

And that's good news for Kentucky flood victims.

Really good to see how can they were and how ready they were to help us.

How eastern Kentucky University is helping returning students affected by the floods.

>> If we don't get some help within months, we're going to.

We're going to go out of business.

>> Kentucky's nursing homes face a worker shortage is the problem about to get worse?

And the state is warning Kentucky's cattle farmers ticks could bring a new disease that could hurt the herd.

>> Production of Kentucky Edition is made possible in part by the KET Endowment for Kentucky Productions.

Leonard Preston Down for Public Affairs and the KET Millennium Fund.

♪ ♪ >> Good evening and welcome to Kentucky EDITION for this Monday.

August, the 15th, I'm Renee Shaw.

Thank you so much for spending some of your Monday evening with us.

The cleanup and recovery efforts continue more than 2 weeks after Eastern Kentucky's devastating deadly floods.

Here's the latest.

The death toll is still 39 from 5 different counties.

It hasn't changed in a few days.

2 women missing from Brevard County are still missing even after search for them over the weekend.

74 customers are still without electricity down from a peak of more than 25,000 on July.

28 in the last week, Governor Andy Beshear has praised FEMA for some aspects of its response to the floods.

But he's been critical of FEMA for denying individual assistance to some victims because of their difficulty in producing paperwork.

Some of it impossible to to find because of the flooding.

Speaking today, the governor said FEMA is making changes that should help.

>> I had a meeting with the theme of this morning and they have taken a number of steps that I do believe will help.

Number one, we announced this previously, but I want to rehash.

They are calling everybody who is denied.

Now people need to pick up when they are cold thus far.

FEMA is trying to go for 1006 applicants 1508 have picked up.

We're talking to them about numbers of times that they call.

But please pick up your based on how hard we pushed.

They are calling if you've been denied to talk through the reasons so you can fix your claim.

The people in the disaster E recovery centers now have the authority to approve claims they would take all your information.

They would get your application ready.

looks good.

And they would have to send it on now.

The people on the ground that you can go into look eye to eye with have the ability to approve claims.

So if you climb still in process, go to one of the disaster recovery centers.

We can put them up on talking.

They can work on your client if you've been denied.

Also go to one of these disaster recovery centers.

If it's for lack of documentation, they can tell you what documentation you need.

You can probably get it in the disaster recovery center.

You can come back to the FEMA table and you can get approved.

This is a big deal.

>> The governor also says he's confident that a special session to deal with the flooding will happen.

He says that he expects in the next few weeks.

He says his administration is having an death conversations with legislative leaders about what will occur during that session.

He says everyone involved is committed to the idea of a special session.

It's back to school this week at campuses across Kentucky.

And that includes some students hurt by the Eastern Kentucky floods.

Many of them go to eastern Kentucky University, at least 100 students were impacted by the floods.

The university is helping them get back on their feet with that student assistance fund for Eastern, which takes care of some emergency needs.

Some students we spoke with say even a little can go a long way toward recovery.

>> Flash flooding is so common but the level that it was at was unlike most people had ever seen.

>> I didn't expect it to be that devastating.

it was it was a real shot.

>> The day before the flooding, I was with my friends from back home and we were out of town for the evening.

And the next morning, the and we've received a lot of calls from her family saying, hey, you better come home.

The water is up close to your house and >> the area they live in the water never been close to their house.

It's not a flood zone.

We get there and every road is an accessible.

We ended up having to wade through the water is about a quarter of a mile to your house.

Looking at our house.

You could see the water just under her door.

She had 2 vehicles in their yard.

They were both flooded.

And the look on her face was sheer panic.

>> I didn't know how bad it was and how Loca look at we are.

There's Rog, small and everything on the yard.

My office trailer was just surrounded by rocks and debris were walking around and go on social media on Facebook in outs are looking at all the damage that was just really heartbreaking to see the community.

I live in impacted the most financial >> I feel kind of bad leaving because I was leaving behind friends who were in.

Really tough situation with the flooding.

And I was going to a place where I don't even have to worry about that here.

So leaving behind my community that was so impacted, kind of >> I wasn't much sad to leave home per se because by the time I you know, disaster relief crews and just a lot of people from outside the state came in and they're helping.

>> It definitely makes me more home said because the sense of community that came from that was incredible.

It put some things into perspective for me like just how a day can change so much.

UK, you started to safe.

And so that for every student from the county.

And that I personally didn't think I would receive anything from that one sci-fi because it wasn't damage to any of my personal items is to my car.

I love upon a hill so the water didn't reach eye area.

It did get to my road which caused some minor damage to my tie.

But I ended up having to be replaced that because that was my transportation here.

I was able to receive some funding to get that taken care of.

>> I was speaking to a lady a who works for ensuring really liked like if there's even afternoon help you please reach out and we'll support you the best we can really good to see.

How can they were and how ready they were to help us.

>> I would love to go back and volunteer hands on more.

If school asked me to do.

>> Probably on back every weekend.

There's a lot of people in eastern Kentucky helping.

But if I can definitely will.

>> Marshall County in West Virginia is reducing tuition rates for students who live within 100 miles of the campus in Huntington that affects counties in Kentuckyian Ohio.

9 Kentucky counties were already included and Marshall's metro tuition rate.

Now, 27 more counties will join the list, which will extend as far west as Clark County.

The rate change goes into effect in the fall of 2023.

The U.S. Justice Department is investigating former President Donald Trump for possibly violating the Espionage Act after FBI agents found classified documents at his Mar-A-Lago home in Florida last week on Saturday, U.S.

Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky called for the repeal of the Espionage Act.

Congress passed in 1917, shortly after the United States entered World War.

One, the law makes it illegal for people to obtain or disclose defense related information that could threaten the U.S. or benefit another country.

Senator Paul called it, quote, an affront to the First Amendment, unquote last week after the FBI search of Mar-A-Lago, Paul called it outrageous and unjust but predictable.

Senator Paul's Democratic opponent in November, Charles Booker reacted to Paul's call to repeal the Espionage Act.

In a statement, Booker says, quote, As a U.S.

Senator, Rand Paul has demonstrated a pattern of self-serving conduct punctuated by a treasonous and disqualifying track record of working against our democracy from inciting an insurrection at the U.S. Capitol to spreading dangerous propaganda following the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Rand Paul has consistently shown us that he is willing to sell out our country for personal gain, unquote.

A Kentucky judge has been suspended with pay after being accused of pressuring a lawyer to support his reelection bid.

The Kentucky Judicial Conduct Commission voted 3 to 2 to suspend Judge Jamie Jamison, a circuit judge in the 42nd Judicial district during a hearing attorney.

Lisa do regard testified that Jamison pressured her more than wants to donate money to his campaign.

And asked her to speak in support of him.

Jamison says it's just part of modern day politics and he will, quote, stay the course.

The 42nd district includes Marshall and Callaway counties and western Kentucky.

The Biden administration has proposed creating a minimum staffing requirements for nursing homes.

It would be the first mandate of its kind.

But legislators and operators of some of Kentucky's long-term care facilities say it could hurt the industry.

Our Casey Parker Bell reports on the potential mandate and the reaction in Kentucky.

And we're you're not doing a good enough job.

You need to just find more people to do it.

There's no one else out there, folks.

And that's the that's the reality of what we're facing.

>> Lawmakers expressed concern last Thursday about proposed federal staffing mandates for nursing homes.

>> The president of the Kentucky Association for Health Care Facilities says nursing homes are already facing staffing shortages and that she isn't sure how facilities will find employees to beat the potential mandates.

>> Nursing facilities across the country will have to hire 187,000 nurses and nurse 8.

It is estimated to cost providers.

Total across the country.

Nearly 10.1 billion dollars.

A recent survey was done a skilled nursing facilities and responses showed that 98% of skilled nursing facilities are experiencing difficulty hiring staff.

>> 2, Kentucky, long-term care operators say that staffing shortages are already impacting their business.

David McKenzie, who runs a center in lieu Issa says they're averaging over $118,000 in losses each month.

>> If we don't get some help within months, we're going to.

We're going go out of business.

And we've been in this community since 1974.

We're going to lose it.

>> Obviously, we will rebound and we will.

If there is a minimum staffing requirement, we will adhere to It is concerning because it's one more thing.

One more metric.

Then we will have to focus on and and again for us.

The biggest concern is where are these individuals to come from?

>> Currently federal law requires nursing homes to provide nursing surfaces that are, quote, sufficient to meet the needs of residents in 2001, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services or CMS recommended a minimum standard of 4.1 nursing hours per resident.

Each day.

According to Becky Johnson, Kentucky, long-term care facilities.

Currently average 3.7, 8 nursing hours per arrest them.

CMS is not yet at the mandate for long-term care facilities and has until February of next year to do so.

But for legislators like state Senator Ralph Alvarado, a physician who works in nursing homes, they say the new mandates could lead to a crisis across the country.

>> All we're doing is kind of just riding along.

We hear these reports, we but he says, oh, yeah, there's a problem, the shortage of state, but we live it.

I love it.

I see it every day and it's coming very, very soon.

Where you have to cities are major employers in our communities that don't allow those folks will be 70 Always looks to be shifted somewhere else.

Many counties out of state, perhaps to some other place because we have nowhere close by for them to be close to their families for Kentucky edition.

I'm Casey Parker Bell.

>> And other news for the first time in a long time, a gallon of unleaded gas costs less than $3 and at least one Kentucky County Triple A says as of today, the average price of a gallon of unleaded is $2.97.

That's in.

Henderson County.

The statewide average today is $3.55.

While the national average is higher at $3.

And $0.95.

♪ ♪ Kentucky still has 11 confirmed cases of monkeypox, according to the Centers for Disease Control.

That's far less than Ohio's 89 cases, Tennessee.

67 and Allan noises 771.

There are more than 11,000 cases nationwide.

Kevin Hall spokesperson for the Lexington, Fayette County Health Department dispel some of the myths and offers advice about monkeypox.

>> Monkeypox is a very rare illness is something we've not had to worry about your United States quite some time.

The symptoms for monkeypox.

>> Beaver.

>> But he aches headaches.

But the biggest telltale sign our couples or blisters, that on here on the body.

So it could look like you've got a bit of an outbreak.

People compared to chickenpox, Kentucky.

They're only 11 confirmed cases and 0 in the county.

We want to try to KET it that way.

That's what people need to pay attention to get vaccinated when it's available to them.

Right now, you may hear that it is in certain segments of the population that turned the population right now.

It have sex with men.

The other risk factors, but it can spread to anyone because this is a group that has got such stigma attached to them and this illness, so much stigma attached want to make sure that we're reaching out to people on the humid and personal level.

But there's nothing in our response that is judgmental.

It's working with people that say we're not targeting you because of anything that you're doing.

We're targeting you because we care about you as members of this community.

So it's working to make sure that that is out and community making sure that the vaccine itself in the arms, the people who need it most.

Those are really what our focus our at this time.

There's very limited vaccine right now.

A big county in Kentucky, but more should be coming in right now.

We've provided more than 100 doses of the vaccine to the start of the population.

We have a very special small-scale mass vaccination clinic later this week over 300 people currently signed up for the vaccine.

And we anticipate being able to have more vaccine to get right now.

It's about 370 doses of this clinic.

It's filling fast, but we really hope to hear soon more vaccine will be available for the vaccine is a 2 dose vaccine.

And what we're seeing is that is complete the series and it's 85% effective.

It all the issues are that supply because can't KET up with the man.

But if you think back to COVID-19, there's the scene being that vaccines available to start small reach the people who need it most.

And then you expand its more vaccine becomes available.

I don't think that the public at large needs to worry about it.

But the need to be very cautious about it.

It's something that can spread easily when you're in close quarters of people in this contact.

But it's one of the biggest misconceptions is that this is only a sexually transmitted disease.

It is not it can be spread too close skin to skin contact.

So any situation where it's a dorm situation shared living situation athletics schools you want because you want to make sure first of all that it also for the vaccine to get it second, wash your hands frequently with soap and water for at least 20 seconds and do that throughout the day and make sure that you're not sharing equipment that you're not.

You're supposed to be physical distancing right now, people because of COVID-19.

So try to KET that distance going right now to protect not only for monkeypox, but as we head into flu season.

Is that protections?

Well?

>> So now on to COVID news, Kentucky's COVID positivity number is up slightly from a week ago.

According to the state, the new positivity rate is 18 and a half percent.

That number is just out today.

It was 18.0.

41% a week ago.

79 of Kentucky's 120 counties are in the red or high category for COVID activity.

It was 80 the previous 2 weeks, 16,540 Kentucky ends have died of COVID since the pandemic began 2 and a half years ago.

Get used to the Heat.

A nonprofit research group of the First Street Foundation says Kentucky is part of a growing quote, extreme heat belt in the middle of the U.S..

The report says there will be times in the next 30 years when the heat index reaches 125 degrees or more.

The report also says that he will affect everything from personal health to electricity used infrastructure.

The foundation says the Heat belt that stretches from northern Texas up to Wisconsin and includes Kentuckyian Indiana.

And the report says carbon emissions are factors in the increased heat.

♪ And Agnew's.

The state is telling Kentucky's cattle farmers to be aware of a new disease carried by an invasive species of tick.

It's already killed cattle and heart and Fleming counties.

The Asian Longhorn tick can carry the disease.

The Kentucky Department of AG says the disease does not affect people.

The disease infects red and white blood cells and cows causing anemia weakness, difficulty walking and even death.

It's important to prevent the disease because there isn't an approved treatment or a vaccine.

Farmers are urged to KET pastors mode and to KET cows out of wooded areas in an attempt to KET ticks off of them.

This is a fairly new problem.

And we spoke to Doctor Carey Bar Ling deputy state that Marion earlier this afternoon.

>> It's a take that.

>> Was first discovered or characterized if you will, only 5 years ago in 2017 and that's in the United States.

It was found east of here and in New it wasn't much longer after that in the same year, 2017 that the Tyler area Orient Alice, it to was was detected in in Khalil herds, the animal that.

Becomes ill with Tyler area.

It that they typically will run a pretty high fever they'll be lethargic and drag are real and some people even say they feel like they've gotten the loan.

You that as being consistent back and forth, what we will see is it sure Ordonez mucous membranes.

In other words, we look around the unknown Azle area or the go or the square of the eyes to the that tissue and we will need to be very pale or maybe even have a, you know, I feel is top appearance.

There are no treatments or vaccines for the Tyler.

So once an animal gets it's infected for life or it passes away.

There's not major.

Concern or is just direct contact of Cal Scales.

If we get a transferable of infected blood from animal to animal, that's that's where hers so control of ticks.

Single.

Use needles and how we utilize or treat acutely into actions it would take to the animals.

Animals that are known are infected and have recovered those persistently infected the carriers Manisha, which we can help them to be seems were not aware of health answer to to humans relative to that, that organism in in Khalil.

And with me now, obviously.

We need to cook to me or in this instance to to normal standards of cooking of done this.

But other than that, there's no, sir.

They're all our laboratory methods study of occasion.

The organism, if if you wanted what gales, we had one and I needed any crops, which is all types a free and we could flip ordinance playing.

You ever sing conducting a battery.

Disease laboratory.

And Murray State breath it that very laboratory there and cool off for a shoe with Virginia Tech.

It was an attack as the good PCR S a so there's there's there's a surveillance system for both the take and the disease were recommending here in Kentucky you work with your private, then the area private practitioner in collecting those takes and they can submit them to the University of Kentuckyian take a live report that we can send send takes off for identification.

>> To your 7 World Series champions.

>> That video from Twitter show Jeffersontown beating Mexico 3 to winds Saturday night in Branson, Missouri and the Cal Ripken.

Major, 70 World Series.

The Courier Journal says for Jeffersontown players made the all-tournament team.

Congrats to them.

You probably learned in school that the Revolutionary War ended when Cornwallis surrendered at Yorktown, there was a battle after that in Kentucky and Kentucky has had a front row seat for a solar eclipse 5 years ago.

More from KET.

Still be Gibbs.

And tonight's look at this week in Kentucky, history.

♪ >> What were you doing on August?

21st 2017, many Kentuckians were looking up.

That was the day a solar eclipse was visible in North America and parts of Kentucky were in the area where the eclipse was at its best.

Thousands gathered in the western Kentucky University Football Stadium to watch and Bowling Green's minor League baseball team tied the game to coincide with the >> it was one of the hottest moments of the Cold War and a Kentuckyian was in the middle of it in 1960, the Soviet shot down an American U 2 spy plane and captured its pilot.

That pilot Francis Gary Powers was born in Jenkins, Kentucky on August, 17th 1929.

He was freed during a prisoner exchange in February of 1960, to return to the United States.

>> And died in the crash of a TV news helicopter in 1977.

If you think Yorktown was the last battle of the Revolutionary War, think again, U.S. British troops pop the battle of blue Lex in present-day Robertson County, Kentucky, 10 months later on August 19th 17, 82 and it was a British victory as 50 British loyalist joined 300 and judging U.S. warriors to be the force of 182 Kentucky militiaman.

Speaking of war, a group of Kentucky volunteers gathered in Georgetown on August 15th 18, 12 to begin a march north to Michigan.

They eventually being a British force an early 18 13, but were then defeated in a counterattack known as the battle of the River Raisin.

Happy birthday.

Jennifer Lawrence.

The Academy Award-winning actress and Kentucky native was born in Indian Hills in Jefferson County, August 15, 1998.

And those are some of the big events this week in Kentucky history.

>> Thank you, Toby.

We've shown you dramatic video from Eastern Kentucky.

A flood victims being rescued by helicopter.

One of the rescuers is a professor from eastern Kentucky University.

Tomorrow you'll hear how he went from conducting a class to conducting air rescues as catastrophic flooding hit eastern Kentucky.

Don't miss that story and more tomorrow night at 6.30, Eastern 5.30, central on Kentucky EDITION where we inform connect and inspire subscribe to our weekly Kentucky Edition, e-mail news letter and watch full clips at KET Dot Org.

You can also find Kentucky Edition on the PBS video app on your mobile Smart TV follow KET on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to stay in the loop.

You're welcome to follow me on Twitter as well as Renee KET.

Until I see you right back again here tomorrow night at 6.30, take really good care.

Tonight.

♪ ♪