Many have sent emails and called regarding the condition of Robinson Forest in the face of the significant flooding that has ravaged eastern Kentucky. We appreciate your concern over both the facility and more importantly the safety of our staff. In short, our staff are all safe. The facilities, namely the classroom and office, sustained floor and lower wall damage. Unlike the CCC that had sense enough in the 30’s to elevate the cabins and dining hall several feet above the ground, the classroom and office we added 20 years ago were at ground level. The elevation disadvantage these structures endure will be resolved this fall! We are fortunate to have insurance to cover replacement of the ¾ inch oak floors and yellow-poplar walls in both rooms as well as replace wet insulation under the sleeping cabins. A little diesel fuel, gravel, and elbow grease and we will have everything in order.

However, much of the downstream community is not as fortunate. Buckhorn and Troublesome, the two streams that you drive next to from Highway 15 to the Forest crested between 10 and 20 feet over the bank. This is significantly higher than any records we have and higher than anyone can remember due to the 9 to 11 inches of rainfall in the surrounding watersheds. This resulted in houses being washed away, moved off foundations, and several living in those watersheds perished.

The office building at Quicksand had 1.5 feet of water in it and while it will be habitable again all the contents were lost. The other agriculture and horticultural buildings, including barns, equipment sheds, and greenhouses and all the horticulture research are a total loss. The Wood Utilization Center was high enough to avoid any problems. Two of the crew stationed at Quicksand, are physically OK, but lost their houses and all belongings. Electricity is out in many places and many are without water. Conditions that will take a while to restore.

UK will be fine of course, however the devastation is real and there are a number of ways to provide community support, please consider doing so. The UK CAFE link below provides a list of resources to assist the community. Contact me if you have an interest in directly supporting UK staff that have been impacted. Thanks again for many of you reaching out.   

 
Jeff Stringer
Chair, Department of Forestry and Natural Resources