Tennessee flooding has displaced thousands, snarled transportation and killed several people after a storm dumped up to two feet of rain over the weekend. Flickr photo.
Tennessee flooding has left at least 11 people dead as parts of the state have been drenched with up to 20 inches of rain over the weekend. Tennessee flood warnings from the National Weather Service continue; however, very little rain is expected for the rest of the week. The Cumberland River swelled to 50 feet above flood stage Monday, and sewer overflow began to flood the streets of Nashville, closing supermarkets, money lenders and other businesses and forcing evacuations of schools, hotels and nursing homes.
Tennessee floods wreak havoc
Tennessee flooding is the result of a record-setting rainstorm that closed interstate highways, displaced thousands from their homes and turned city streets and parking lots into raging rivers. CNN reports that the storm causing the Tennessee floods also killed four people in Mississippi — three in tornadoes and one in a rain-related traffic accident — while at the same time state officials were making preparations for the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico to hit the Mississippi coastline.
Tennessee flood zones
Tennessee flood zones where rain hit hardest are in the southwest part of the state. In addition to the Cumberland River flooding in Nashville, 500 people were evacuated from two housing subdivisions, a trailer park and a nearby U.S. Navy base in Millington. Memphis received more than 10 inches of rain. Other Tennessee flood zones reported by Tennessean.com include Downtown Lebanon. The Tennessee Highway Patrol closed Interstate 24 in Davidson and Rutherford counties, Interstate 65 at Cool Springs in Williamson County and several sections of Interstate 40 in Hickman and Dickson counties.
Tennessee flood video
Tennessee flood video shot by Department of Transportation cameras showed cars floating down Interstate 24 westbound near Bell Road in Antioch as the concrete median held flood waters from nearby Mill Creek like a levee. Drivers and passengers jumped over the barrier and watched water turn their vehicles over and bounce them against one another. Water carried off a portable building from the bed of a tractor-trailer. It was demolished when it struck other vehicles. A Tennessee flood video aired on CNN showed an entire building being washed downstream.
