Video shows stunning helicopter rescue of 83-year-old woman from Kentucky floods

Woman was one of a family of five trapped in their attic by rushing flood waters that have sown chaos across the Bluegrass State

An 83-year-old woman in Kentucky was hoisted to safety by a helicopter after her house was surrounded by rushing water.

Search and rescue volunteers in Wolfe County shared a video on Facebook on Sunday morning showing the woman being lifted from her home by a Kentucky National Guard chopper.

The woman was one of five people trapped in the house’s attic by deep flood waters, which have sown chaos across the Bluegrass State since governor Andy Beshear declared an official emergency on Thursday.

Search and rescue workers broke through a window to get to the family and then took them one at a time up to the roof, where they were lifted into the Black Hawk helicopter.

The non-profit Wolfe County Search and Rescue Team said the clip was an example of “teams coming together to save lives”, and gave thanks to “countless agencies from across the state and beyond that came in to assist”.

All five people were safely rescued.

At least 28 people have been killed in the floods, according to the US Federal Emergency Management Agency (Fema), with as many as 37 unaccounted for as of Sunday afternoon.

“We are going to be finding bodies for weeks,” Mr Beshear told NBC News, adding on Twitter: “There is widespread damage with many families displaced and more rain expected throughout the next day.”

The US National Weather Service (NWS) expects further rounds of showers and storms throughout Tuesday, with flood warnings in effect through Monday morning for areas in southern and eastern Kentucky.

Another video shared by the local TV station WKYT showed a car and a fire engine jammed underneath a bridge after being washed down into the creek by flood waters.

It is the second major national disaster to strike Kentucky in seven months, following a swarm of tornadoes that claimed nearly 80 lives in the western part of the state in December.

On Thursday, Mr Beshear declared a state emergency and described the disaster as “one of the worst, most devastating flooding events” in Kentucky's history.

President Joe Biden likewise declared a major disaster in the state, allowing the release of federal funding to help local authorities.