JACKSON, Ky. (LEX 18) — Ashley Fallen is a single mom with five kids. Last summer when floods hit eastern Kentucky communities, she says her mom instincts kicked in.
"Being a single mom of five kids, it was very scary to wake up surrounded by water. I just did what any mom would do, got them out, got them to safety and said God's got it from there,” explains Fallen.
The family lived over in the Quicksand neighborhood in Jackson. Ashley says the water completely took their home. FEMA joined the family in a full circle moment as they became the first family to purchase a FEMA Temporary Housing Unit.
Fallen says, "It's been a journey — between the mud and the extra rain we didn't seem to need, we can finally say there's grass growing, we're settling in and it's gonna have a new charm to it to call home tonight."
Kentucky flood survivors are among the first to be offered the chance to purchase these FEMA temporary housing units and there are grants available to help them make the properties functional.
Myra Shird, FEMA’s federal coordinating officer, says, "Well I think number one, it shows people 'hey, it can happen for me.' I think a lot of the story and narrative have been 'oh we've lost everything.' But now for the opportunity to start anew, this is incredible."
Now, as this family settles into their permanent home, Fallen says this is the best gift she could give her children.
She says, "To me, it's the one thing I can give them that they know is permanent and to be able to purchase today's unit gives them a forever home that six months ago we were homeless. So, it's something I can give them to carry on with."
The family is sticking together and starting a new journey.
