"Chase Hays and more than 50 neighbors are suing Blackhawk Mining after a silt retention pond burst and killed 43 people".
"Chase Hays knew it was time to evacuate when he saw his neighbor’s home float through his front yard. It was just after midnight on 28 July 2022, and Lost Creek, Kentucky, was experiencing a catastrophic rainstorm.
As Hays would later learn, the rains caused a silt retention pond to burst at a nearby mine, sending a torrent of rainwater and sediment down the mountain.
Hays, 35, led his fiancee and three children out of their home and into the rising water, breaking through a neighbor’s fence to get to higher ground. His terrified seven-year-old daughter prayed aloud for their safety. “I heard her say: ‘God, if you need to take me to save the rest of my family, I’m OK with that,’” Hays said.
By morning, at least two of Hays’ neighbors had died and dozens of people had lost their homes."
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