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<v Speaker 1>By Bill Cunningham, the great American. Of course, my hometown

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<v Speaker 1>of Covington is being flooded as we speak. We've had

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<v Speaker 1>reports now from me Richmond later on from Aurora, Indiana,

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<v Speaker 1>but until then, the relatively new mayor of Covington is

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<v Speaker 1>Mayor Ron Washington, who is a hero to many. Did

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<v Speaker 1>a great job in the campaign. In fact, he was

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<v Speaker 1>so good politically that no one ran against him. And

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<v Speaker 1>now he's being tested by fire, ice and flood. Mayor

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<v Speaker 1>Ron Washington, welcome for the second time to the Bill

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<v Speaker 1>Cunningham Show. It. As we sit here about one o'clock

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<v Speaker 1>in the afternoon, can you tell the American people the

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<v Speaker 1>status of flooding in my hometown of Covington.

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<v Speaker 2>I would be glad to thank you, mister Cunningham for

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<v Speaker 2>having me on the city Covington has received some minor

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<v Speaker 2>flooding when you look at the whole picture, around the

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<v Speaker 2>forty fifth Street area of Covington has received flooding. The

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<v Speaker 2>trailer park that we are very concerned about has received

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<v Speaker 2>a small amount of damage. We did evacuate people to

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<v Speaker 2>Latonia Elementary School. A few people took us up on

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<v Speaker 2>the evacuation. The determination is going to be made today

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<v Speaker 2>whether not to keep that evacuation center opened.

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<v Speaker 1>What are the experts tell you about the next twenty

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<v Speaker 1>four to forty eight hours. Has it crested yet or

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<v Speaker 1>is that later sometime today.

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<v Speaker 2>We still do not know when the crest is going

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<v Speaker 2>to happen. I just got off the phone with the

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<v Speaker 2>fire chief. The fire chief indicated that we're still watching

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<v Speaker 2>and seeing. We believe that it is steady. Since last

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<v Speaker 2>night it rose we believe about eight to twelve inches.

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<v Speaker 2>So we've got our eye on it, but we're fully

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<v Speaker 2>confident that it may not be raising anymore. You know,

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<v Speaker 2>we do have the VFW Hall that's off of forty

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<v Speaker 2>seventh Street. It is completely submersed, and and then we

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<v Speaker 2>do have some basements that have anywhere from twelve the

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<v Speaker 2>four feet of water, and we're looking forward to the

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<v Speaker 2>clean up par Washington.

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<v Speaker 1>When I take this suspension bridge and look to my

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<v Speaker 1>right or left, there's a big floodwall there. What is

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<v Speaker 1>the status of the river relative to that high floodwall

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<v Speaker 1>on the right and left side of the suspension bridge?

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<v Speaker 2>Very good question. On the right side, as many of

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<v Speaker 2>you know, where Madison Avenue ends into the floodwall, we

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<v Speaker 2>erected the floodgates several days ago. The water is up

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<v Speaker 2>to the floodgates at the end of Madison Avenue, and

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<v Speaker 2>we also put it at the end of Bakewell Street.

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<v Speaker 2>People may remember that as the former entries to the

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<v Speaker 2>Waterfront restaurant. So the floodgates up there, floodgates up at

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<v Speaker 2>Sixteenth Street, so we're preventing water from going onto our

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<v Speaker 2>main streets. Now to the left, if you're coming south

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<v Speaker 2>on the suspension bridge, you have Riverside Drive. Riverside Drive

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<v Speaker 2>is a very scenic drive. I WRO It is now

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<v Speaker 2>covered with water and debris and some of the statutes

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<v Speaker 2>are underwater.

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<v Speaker 1>If one owns a home in that area and by

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<v Speaker 1>the way, Riverside that's beautiful, it's gorgeous. Are those homes

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<v Speaker 1>inundated yet? Will they be? What is the status of

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<v Speaker 1>those Antebellum homes on Riverside Drive?

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<v Speaker 2>So far, they have not been inundated. It's just the roadway.

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<v Speaker 2>The park, there's a George Rogers Park is there. It's

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<v Speaker 2>received from water. But reporting as of now is that

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<v Speaker 2>those homes are safe and we don't perceive a problem

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<v Speaker 2>with those beautiful homes.

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<v Speaker 1>And as far as the as far as the Licking River,

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<v Speaker 1>what is the status of the Licking River.

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<v Speaker 2>Well, the Licking River is what's causing the trouble in Latonia.

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<v Speaker 2>Uh you know, Latonia is also the Licking River. And

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<v Speaker 2>and like I reported before, it's it's it's we believe

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<v Speaker 2>it's steady right now. But it has done some damages

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<v Speaker 2>to some basements in the forty fifth area, the VSW

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<v Speaker 2>forty seventh Street. It is underwater, of course, it sits

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<v Speaker 2>directly on the Licking River. But thankfully and prayerfully, at

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<v Speaker 2>this time no one has been hurt.

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<v Speaker 1>If you can recall, maybe you were in service to

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<v Speaker 1>our great nation in the military, but in nineteen ninety

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<v Speaker 1>seven the flood went over the top of the flood

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<v Speaker 1>wall and had some real difficulties to anticipate this time

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<v Speaker 1>that's going to happen or not, Assuming the status quo

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<v Speaker 1>is maintained, assuming it doesn't rain anymore, and assuming the

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<v Speaker 1>high River goes up another foot maybe eighteen inches, will

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<v Speaker 1>a floodwall hold.

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<v Speaker 2>Floodwall will hold. I was not in the military as

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<v Speaker 2>a police officer, the floodwall will hold, you know, So

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<v Speaker 2>we should we should be good.

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<v Speaker 1>All right, So that beautiful hotel where Barry Larkin used

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<v Speaker 1>to live on top of that hotel. When I take

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<v Speaker 1>this Suspenar bridge on the right, and is that accessible

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<v Speaker 1>if someone wants to come into that area, which is

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<v Speaker 1>by the convention center, are you shutting down traffic thither

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<v Speaker 1>and foe? Or can one access the convention center?

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<v Speaker 2>Everyone? If you want to come to the convention center,

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<v Speaker 2>it's a riverside drive. Or excuse me, to Second Street

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<v Speaker 2>where the hotels are where our beloved CORPORATEX is no problems.

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<v Speaker 2>You can park there, the parking garage is fine. Everything's fine.

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<v Speaker 2>On the other side of the floodwall.

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<v Speaker 1>Where your life jacket not so good. Riverside drive? Is

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<v Speaker 1>this gorgeous? But is that inaccessible? Now? For those who

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<v Speaker 1>know what we're talking about. When you go on the

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<v Speaker 1>suspension bridge on the left, are some of those homes

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<v Speaker 1>one hundred years old a little bit up on the

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<v Speaker 1>top of a little hill overlooking the high River. Can

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<v Speaker 1>someone access those homes or not?

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<v Speaker 2>They can access them from their alley ways, but they

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<v Speaker 2>cannot access their front doors unless they have a rowboat

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<v Speaker 2>because the street is covered with water.

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<v Speaker 1>And then the cover up's going to take a while.

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<v Speaker 1>Correct because these things happened normally. It's the it's the

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<v Speaker 1>it's the fight afterwards to get rid of all the

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<v Speaker 1>debris and the mud that's going to be the problem

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<v Speaker 1>looking forward.

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<v Speaker 2>That's correct. And a special shout out to our public works.

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<v Speaker 2>You know, they're the unsung, unseen heroes of our city

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<v Speaker 2>that keep the trains running on time. And they've done

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<v Speaker 2>a great jobs erecting the flood walls and putting barricades

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<v Speaker 2>up where Riverside Drive is and and River Road where

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<v Speaker 2>there's uh low lying roadways near the river. And also

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<v Speaker 2>our fire department who went door to door, especially in

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<v Speaker 2>our trailer park and the forty fifth Street area to

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<v Speaker 2>warn people about the flooding. So hats off to them.

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<v Speaker 1>So really it's a problem, not yet a crisis. Have

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<v Speaker 1>you ordered any evacuations, any orders on the citizens of Covington.

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<v Speaker 2>No, no evacuations, No evacuation, No evacuations, no evacuations. The

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<v Speaker 2>trailer park was evacuated, but you know that that evacuation

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<v Speaker 2>took two days ago. It was a voluntary evacuation. It

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<v Speaker 2>was not an order from the government so to speak.

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<v Speaker 2>We did provide shelter for them at our Latonia elementary school,

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<v Speaker 2>and we suspect that the evacuation shelter will be shut

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<v Speaker 2>down today.

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<v Speaker 1>And one thing I talked to Rob Sanders over the weekend.

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<v Speaker 1>We texted back and forth. Is there be any incidences

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<v Speaker 1>of looting or unusual criminal behaviors your knowledge?

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<v Speaker 2>No, I've remind you that we're talking about Kentucky. No,

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<v Speaker 2>there hasn't been.

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<v Speaker 1>Not in Kentucky.

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<v Speaker 2>It doesn't happen.

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<v Speaker 1>I Covington doesn't.

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<v Speaker 2>We're don't allow that. We put cons up you.

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<v Speaker 1>No question about it. You haven't Comington a whole bunch

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<v Speaker 1>of real functional police officers. Well, Mayor Ron Washington, we

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<v Speaker 1>have to go. You're being tested by fire and by flood,

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<v Speaker 1>and the first few months of your titular head of

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<v Speaker 1>the Covington government has been interesting and I'm sure coming

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<v Speaker 1>to will get along quite well. And once again, Mayor

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<v Speaker 1>Ron Washington, thanks for coming on the Bill Cunningham, Jean

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<v Speaker 1>and Mary, you're a great American. Thank you very much.

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<v Speaker 2>Thank you, sir.

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<v Speaker 1>Take care. Let's continue with more and if the line

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<v Speaker 1>becomes available five one, three, seven, four, nine, seven thousand

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<v Speaker 1>or pounds seven hundred. The New at and T. Bill

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<v Speaker 1>Cunningham on news radio seven hundred WLW