12 people dead in Kentucky after Winter Storm Fern. What we know about the victims

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A Louisville man living in the streets was found without shoes before he died, a Pulaski man died in a travel trailer that lost heat in the storm, and ambulances couldn’t get through the storm fast enough to help one man suffering a heart attack and another stuck in a fire, according to local officials across Kentucky who confirmed information about several people killed in Winter Storm Fern.

Gov. Andy Beshear on Wednesday said 11 people in Kentucky have died as a result of Winter Storm Fern, which slammed Kentucky with several inches of snow and ice over the weekend. The death toll increased to 12 Thursday after Beshear announced the death of a 32-year-old woman from Fayette County.

During a news conference Thursday, Beshear said the state is investigating more deaths.

“This is a tough time for these families, and I hope you’ll join Britainy and me in praying for them,” Beshear said on X.

What we know about Kentucky storm victims

More details have emerged about the 12 victims since Beshear first confirmed the deaths Wednesday.

Jordyn Daws, 32, of Lexington, was found dead in the front yard of a home on Wargrave Walk Wednesday. The Fayette County Coroner’s Office said she was pronounced dead at 12:45 p.m. from hypothermia due to environmental exposure.

Marvin Knuckles, a 48-year-old man in Morgan County, was an inmate at Eastern Kentucky Correctional Complex who died after a fall while he was shoveling snow, according to the state corrections department.

Betty Veach, a 72-year-old woman in Whitley County, died after falling on ice, according to Beshear and Veach’s family. Beshear said hypothermia was a factor in Veach’s death.

Richard Marshall, 55, died over the weekend after being found outside in “really grave condition,” Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg said Wednesday in a social media video post. “The hospital could not revive him.”

Marshall, WDRB in Louisville reported, “didn’t have a home. He spent most of his time around a neighborhood tire shop, where friends said he was a familiar face and a kind soul who had fallen on hard times.”

“Marshall was found sitting on the ground near the tire shop, without shoes, as temperatures plunged into the teens with a biting wind chill. He was rushed to the hospital, but friends said it was too late,” WDRB said.

WAVE television station in Louisville reported that “Marshall died just after 12:30 p.m. January 24 at Uof L Health - Jewish Hospital. After a preliminary investigation, the Jefferson County Coroner’s Office says the cause of Marshall’s death is consistent with hypothermia. The manner of death is still pending.”

James Phillips, 62, was found dead Saturday morning at 8:45 a.m. in an area called Bend of the Lake Shores, Pulaski County Coroner Clyde Strunk said.

Strunk said Phillips was living in a travel trailer and the power had gone out because of the storm.

The Owensboro Times reported Daviess County Coroner Jeff Jones confirmed a man, 68, died on Tuesday when he had a heart attack shoveling snow.

Three fatalities in Johnson County in separate incidents were determined by state officials to be storm related deaths, said Johnson Judge Executive Mark McKenzie.

Johnson County Deputy Coroner Harry Frisby also said three people in that county have died in separate incidents since the storm struck.

Harold Prince, 71, died of a heart attack after leaving his home in Stambaugh and walking to the apartment home of a friend to check on them, Frisby said.

Ray Reeder, 71, a retired assistant Paintsville fire chief, died in an ATV accident while he was trying to navigate a steep driveway at his home in Van Lear. The ATV overturned and he was pinned, Frisby said.

William Fairchild, 64, had a heart attack at his home at Staffordsville. Because of the weather, emergency medical personnel were delayed in reaching him, and he died, Frisby said.

In Graves County on Sunday, WNKY reported, “deputies say Cuba Fire Department personnel faced ‘non-passable road conditions and temperatures in the low teens’” when responding to a fire that killed 79-year-old Garvin R. Doran and injured his 81-year-old wife, Faye Doran.

Deputies told WNKY they heated the home with a wood stove.

Michael Blansette, 78, of Owen County, was found dead in his driveway by a neighbor Tuesday. Owen County Coroner Mark Garnett said Blansette slipped on the ice while going outside to charge a battery for his van and couldn’t get up.

Blansette was last heard from on Monday around 7 p.m., according to Garnett.

Livingston County Coroner Jeff Armstrong said the victim in his county was an 83-year-old man. It’s being labeled as a weather-related death, but no other details were provided.

“This has been a massive storm. Sadly we have now lost 10 Kentuckians,” Beshear said Wednesday before the 11th death was announced. “Let’s make sure that we don’t lose others.”

Beshear said these victims’ families will receive $10,000 each from the Team Kentucky Emergency Relief Fund to help pay for funeral costs.

“If we can be there for these families, we want to be, and we hope this support can be a little bit of light in a dark time. We’re praying for these families during this difficult time,” Beshear said.

In addition to these deaths, a contracted snow plow driver was injured in a crash on the Western Kentucky Parkway in Grayson County Wednesday, Beshear said. The driver was flown to a hospital, according to Beshear.

This is a developing story and will be updated.

This story was originally published January 28, 2026 at 4:38 PM.