The mighty Tennessee River unleashed her fury once again last week on homes and businesses along her banks, following several periods of heavy rainfall. Flooding of near-epic proportions, echoing the flooding event of one year ago in February 2019, warranted evacuations and caused property damage in Wayne County and surrounding counties as well. As seen in the photos, the river city of Clifton and its surrounding camping and resort areas were once again inundated from the flood waters that flowed above and beyond the banks of the river. Another record-setting February of heavy rainfall has given all the water nowhere else to go but out of the river’s banks and into streets, homes, and properties.
All the rain also caused normally docile creeks and streams to overflow their banks in other parts of the county as well, causing flash flooding and making roads impassable at times.
The National Weather Service issued an updated chart over the weekend showing that the river crested at Clifton on Sunday at a level of nearly 380 feet above sea level. The water is expected to now begin receding at a steady pace, but it is still expected to be several days, possibly weeks, before the river is back below flood stage. More rain in the forecast will certainly impact how quickly (or slowly) the flood waters will recede.
