Trailers offer temporary home as flood victims plan future

PRESTONSBURG, Ky. (AP) — David Stephens' children romped around the small patch of grass they've turned into a makeshift playground, running and laughing — seemingly without a care in the world.

Their father, though, is gripped by worry about the future. And he marvels at his kids' resilience, considering the losses and hardships they've endured.

When floodwaters engulfed their eastern Kentucky home in late July, they first moved into a motel. Now Stephens, his 8-year-old son, Loki, and 6-year-old daughter, Kerrigan, are staying in a travel trailer — taking their place among those displaced by the disaster in a recreational area filled with lawn chairs, picnic tables, bikes and toys as people grasp for some sense of normalcy.

“My kids are pretty tough, and we've been through a lot,” he said. “We lost everything we had.”