NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Devastating thunderstorms slammed Tennessee and northern Mississippi over the weekend, killing at least 15 people, closing scores of highways and leaving weeks of cleanup for residents whose homes were damaged.
Thousands of residents were evacuated, and hundreds of others were rescued from their homes — with some plucked from rooftops — as floodwaters from swollen rivers and creeks inundated neighborhoods across the region. Hospitals, schools and state buildings also were flooded.
Firefighters broke through the windows of Audrey Tal ley’s trailer early Sunday to rescue her family, including her three small grandchildren, ages 9 months to 4 years old. Talley’s son woke her up to tell her water was coming into the trailer in south Nashville. Within 10 minutes, it was knee deep.
“We’ve lost everything,” the 47-year-old Talley said at an emergency shelter at Lips comb University. “I don’t know what we’re going to do. We’ve got nowhere to go.”
State officials in Tennessee said Sunday the flooding is as bad as they’ve seen since the mid-1970s. Tornadoes or high winds killed at least four people, unexpected flash floods swept some unsuspecting residents to their deaths, and an untold number of homes were flooded as urban drainage systems and watersheds struggled to remove the deluge.
Tennessee Gov. Phil Brede sen called it an “unprecedented rain event.” More than 13 inches of rain fell in Nashville over a two-day period, nearly doubling the previous record of 6.68 inches that fell in the wake of Hurricane Fredrick in 1979.
At least 11 people died in Tennessee, and a 12th is missing and presumed dead. Officials said two victims in Nashville were found Sunday in a flooded house and two were found in an overturned vehicle that was submerged by rising water.
Three people in northern Mississippi were killed when their homes were destroyed by tornadoes, and a fourth died after he drove into floodwaters.
