Salem News Channel

Southeast States See Catastrophic Flooding

The rain came fast and furious on Wednesday night, and when it had stopped, a few spots in North Georgia had picked up 6 to 11 inches of it, causing massive flooding that killed one person. Julie Barrs, 56, was found dead on Thursday after her vehicle was swamped by a flooded mountain creek in Murray County, county Sheriff Jimmy Davenport told CNN. The vehicle was found with its front doors submerged and back hatch open in the creek, according to a report from the county’s sheriff’s office. Her body was later recovered downstream from the vehicle after an “extensive search by public safety officials and citizens,” Davenport said. Flash flood emergencies — the highest level of flood warning — were issued Thursday morning for McCaysville, Georgia, in Fannin County, and Copperhill, Tennessee, in Polk County. Record flooding struck there along a river known as the Toccoa River in Georgia and the Ocoee River in Tennessee across the border. Emergency responders from both states worked together to reach stranded residents. As of late Thursday afternoon, over 100 people had been rescued across Georgia and Tennessee, according to Kristin Coulter with the Tennessee Emergency Management Authority. Coulter said the agency was not aware of any significant injuries or missing people at that time. A separate flash flood emergency was also issued Wednesday night for other parts of Fannin County and neighboring Gilmer County in Georgia. Emergency management in Fannin and Gilmer counties in Georgia reported “multiple homes flooded and some completely surrounded by water” early Thursday morning. McCaysville Police Chief Michael Earley called flooding in his city “catastrophic.” Swift water teams rescued roughly 57 people overnight in Fannin County, and evacuations were ordered early Thursday for McCaysville residents along the river, officials said. Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp declared a state of emergency for Fannin, Gilmer, Murray and Union counties Thursday afternoon. The Tennessee Emergency Management Authority activated its Operations Center to Level 4 for the Polk County flooding. The Polk County sheriff and McCaysville police chief ordered mandatory curfews for flood-impacted areas from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. Multiple roads are blocked by mudslides or have been washed away completely, and propane tanks were dislodged and floating in floodwater, Fannin County Fire Chief Larry Thomas told CNN. One tank in McCaysville caught fire and exploded. A responding firefighter suffered minor injuries, Earley said. There were also at least four structure fires Wednesday night, which Thomas believes were caused by lightning. Two of the structures, one a home, were lost after floodwater prevented fire trucks from responding. A few spots in North Georgia picked up 6 to 11 inches of rain. The high end of that range is a 1 in 1,000 year rainfall for 12 hours — a rate that has only a 0.1% chance of happening in a given year, under normal circumstances, according to the National Weather Service.

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