Beshear blasts Lexington’s winter storm cleanup efforts as ‘unacceptable’
A new critic weighed in Thursday on Lexington’s slow Winter Storm Fern clean up — Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, who called conditions in Lexington “unacceptable.”
At the tail end of his weekly Team Kentucky update Feb. 5, Beshear said state crews offered to help with the city’s response but were told “our help wasn’t needed.”
“We have asked, and it has been accepted to help some more,” Beshear said, adding residents in Lexington will soon see more state personnel with the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet out assisting with efforts to clear streets in Fayette County.
“You will see KYTC trucks back in Lexington trying to speed this thing up,” Beshear said.
“We appreciate the support being offered by the state,” Susan Straub, a spokesperson for the city said in statement via email Thursday afternoon. “We have state trucks, construction equipment and city trucks on our streets clearing the roads. We pre-treated the roads before the storm began. We will conduct an after-action review to find out what went right, what went wrong and to put together a new plan going forward.”
His critical comments of the city’s storm response come nearly two weeks after Lexington received 5.5 inches of snow and 1.48 inches of precipitation when Fern swept through the area between Jan. 24 and Jan. 25.
City officials have said persistent cold and lingering ice have complicated cleanup efforts, but as of Wednesday snow and ice build-up was still blocking lanes on major roads and completely covering many neighborhood streets. Additionally, city officials in Lexington have been unable to say how many neighborhood streets have been cleared.
Iced-over neighborhoods and subdivisions have kept Fayette County Public Schools closed to in-person classes for nearly two weeks.
It is the second winter the city has received public backlash over prolonged street clearing after winter storm events, something Gorton has conceded is an issue.
“The conditions of the roads in Lexington are unacceptable. They need to be better, but we want to work constructively with Lexington,” Beshear said Thursday.
He added the state government stands ready to offer the city guidance about how it can improve its response.
“Part of it is we did, I believe, some pre-treatment that Lexington did not do and should probably do,” Beshear said of state roads, adding that those and interstates were in much better shape shortly after the storm.
Asked by a reporter if he had spoken personally with Gorton about the city’s response, Beshear said he had not but was willing to.
“This is the second one in a row that we should have seen better results, and I think the mayor has said that and has taken responsibility,” Beshear said.
He added: “It can’t take a third event to get there.”
This story was originally published February 5, 2026 at 2:19 PM.