Authorities said the boy had fatally shot his 2-year-old sister, Caroline, in the chest.

In rural southern Kentucky, far removed from the national debate over gun control, where some children get their first guns even before they start first grade, the accident stunned the community.

Kristian's rifle was kept in a corner of the mobile home, and the family didn't realize a bullet had been left in it, Cumberland County Coroner Gary White said.

"Down in Kentucky where we're from, you know, guns are passed down from generation to generation," White said. "You start at a young age with guns for hunting and everything."

What is more unusual than a child having a gun, he said, is "that a kid would get shot with it."

In this case, the rifle was made by a company that sells guns specifically for children — "My first rifle" is the slogan — in colors ranging from plain brown to hot pink to royal blue to multi-color swirls.

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Furniture she and her husband spent years paying off stood in their front yard, soaked and caked with mud from deadly flooding caused by record-busting rains that forced thousands to evacuate -- some by boat and canoe. Her children's toys, clothes, books and games were destroyed, along with two vehicles that were left behind.

"When I first got here, I just cried and cried. My whole life was gone," she said.

Officials in Tennessee on Thursday reported the state's 20th death from the storm. The deaths of at least 30 people in Tennessee, Mississippi and Kentucky were blamed on weekend flooding and tornadoes.

The new death was in Memphis, where police reported that Terrance Williams, 32, went missing Saturday after his car was disabled in rising floodwaters. Police found a body Wednesday but haven't yet released the identity.

Two other people were missing in Nashville, and searches are under way for two in Kentucky.

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