LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg has declared a State of Emergency in the city after severe storms, high winds and heavy rain left damage in the city Friday afternoon.

In a statement, Greenberg cited "widespread damage and danger to lives and property" as the reason for the declaration. 

"This will allow the most effective use of our emergency services and first responders and allow Louisville Metro Government to access potentially available funding to assist in recovering from these severe weather events," he said. "I encourage everyone in our community to exercise extreme caution this evening, and in the coming days — do not drive through standing water, do not approach downed power lines, or do anything that would put the lives of anyone at risk."

Storms rolled through Kentucky and southern Indiana with damaging winds and some flooding in Louisville and the surrounding areas, including southern Indiana. 

At the height of the storm, winds knocked out power to more than 222,000 homes in Kentucky with 77,940 of the outages in Jefferson County. In southern Indiana, about 11,000 were without power. 

To track LG&E and KU outages in Kentucky, click here. 

To track Duke Energy outages in Indiana, click here. 

white castle sign bowling green mark butler photo saved 030323.jpg

High winds knocked a White Castle sign on to a car at the restaurant on Scottsville Road in Bowling Green, Ky. (Image courtesy of Mark Butler) March 3, 2023

In western Kentucky, high winds knocked over a White Castle sign in Bowling Green that landed on a white car in the parking lot. Viewer Mark Butler tells WDRB that he was eating lunch at the restaurant on Scottsville Road, when the saw the sign sway and the pole beneath the sign buckled. No one was hurt, but the car was destroyed. 

Heavy rains caused some flooding on Friday. Louisville Public Works said crews placed barricades at intersections impacted by flooding, including parts of Jeffersontown, Clifton and west Louisville.

Police in Sellersburg blocked off parts of S. Indiana Avenue because of flooding. Officials said the road will likely stay closed all day. More closures and power outages are expected as more rain falls and winds roll through the area on Friday.

In southern Indiana, creeks overflowed in neighborhoods in New Albany including one near the Floyd County Fairgrounds. A sewer line in that neighborhood also backed up, causing basements to flood.

Near Corydon, the Harrison County Emergency Management director Mike Kurz said by Friday afternoon there were many trees and utility lines down, but no injuries were reported.  He said there was a utility pole down on Walnut Street near Albany Street near downtown Corydon, and the slab bridge near downtown was closed because of high water. Several streets were also flooded including Poplar Street, Rocky Hollow Road, Prfimmers Chapel Road and New Middletown Road near Turley Road. 

The Meade County RECC said it had more than 8,300 customers without power across its six county service area, which includes Meade, Breckinridge, Ohio, Grayson, Hardin and Hancock Counties. For updates, follow their outage map. Crews are working to restore power, but trees are down, poles are broken and electric lines are on the ground. So safety is an issue. To notify them of issues, call 877-276-5353. 

In Bardstown, Kentucky, the Nelson County Emergency Management opened a storm shelter at the Nelson County Civic Center located at 321 South Third Street in Bardstown. 

Officials in Breckinridge County, Ky. opened a shelter in the basement of the courthouse in Hardinsburg. Our WDRB crew spent time in the shelter watching WDRB News with several families as the worst of the storm passed over. 

Also in Breckinridge County, the powerful winds ripped a roof off of a barn, knocked down trees and sent a giant limb through the middle of a home. A man who lives in the home told WDRB News he was there with his two youngest daughters when the limb smashed through the roof, leaving a hole in the roof and a living room in the dark, with pieces of the ceiling on the floor. 

"So I grabbed them. I threw them in the back bedroom and laid on top of them for, it felt like hours. It was probably a couple of minutes," he said. 

He and his family had just moved into the home, and now has to pack up to stay somewhere else. But most importantly, no one was hurt.

"That's the main thing, everybody's OK," he said. "We have a place to go tonight. We're getting clothes and stuff, but everything else can be replaced. Lives can't be replaced so we were fortunate."

IMAGES | Flooding and weather damage during March 3, 2023 storms

Louisville Public Works spokesman Sal Melendez reminded people to not walk, swim or drive through flood waters. "Turn Around, Don't Drown" is the most repeated warning. Other reminders if you are near high water: 

  • Never drive around barricades. Wait for local responders to safely direct traffic from flooded areas. 
  • Stay inside your car, if it is trapped in rapidly moving water. Get on the roof, if water is rising inside the car. 
  • Get to the highest level, if trapped in a building. Only get on the roof, if necessary. Once there, signal for help. 
  • Be aware of the risk of electrocution. Do not touch electrical equipment, if it is wet or you are standing in water. 
  • Avoid wading in floodwater, which can be contaminated and contain dangerous debris. 
  • Use a generator or other gasoline-powered machinery only outdoors and away from windows. 

Officials at Louisville Metro Emergency Services are asking for patience following the severe weather and high winds Friday afternoon.

A spokesperson said the Louisville Metro 911 Call Center is "experiencing a high volume of calls" and to only call 911 to to "report situations if you or others are in serious or imminent danger."

Those needing to report downed power lines are asked to call LG&E at (502) 589-1444 (Fast Path 1-1-3) or MetroSafe's non-emergency line at (502) 574-2111.

Friday evening, Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear tweeted that three people had died in the state during the storms. 

In a tweet around 5:30 p.m., the governor said one person had died in Simpson County. Just after 6 p.m., he reported another death in the state, in Edmonson County. Just before 8 p.m., he reported the third death, in Logan County.

Copyright 2023 WDRB Media. All Rights Reserved.