FRANKFORT, Ky. — In 2023, Kentucky lawmakers passed a bill to create a statewide urban search and rescue program. It allows more resources to be deployed quickly when a natural disaster hits. Two years later and the program’s leaders said they are making good progress to becoming fully operational.

Made of up specially trained first responders, close to 300 people will deploy from two sites in the state, where they can be anywhere in a matter of a few hours.

“Very happy to report that there’s been a lot of progress made in the first fiscal year of the budget,” Kentucky Emergency Management Director Eric Gibson told lawmakers.

Gibson explain that their budget has been spent in full, all going to purchase vehicles and equipment, train personnel, and construct a mock city for simulating

See Full Page