Deadly flooding continues
NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Muddy waters poured over the banks of Nashville's swollen Cumberland River on Monday, spilling into Music City's historic downtown streets while rescuers using boats and Jet Skis plucked stranded residents away from their flooded homes as the death toll from the weekend storms climbed to 28 people in three states.
The flash floods caused by record-breaking amounts of rain caught many off-guard, forcing thousands to frantically flee their homes and hotels. The rapidly rising waters led to the deaths of 17 people in Tennessee alone, including 10 in Nashville, and officials feared that the death toll could increase. Officials announced the latest deaths late Monday after receding flood waters revealed six more bodies.
"Do we expect to find more people? Probably so. We certainly hope that it's not a large number," said Metro Nashville Davidson County Fire Chief Kim Lawson.
Though the historic Ryman Auditorium - the former home of the Grand Ole Opry - and the recording studios of Music Row were not in immediate danger, parts of other top Nashville tourist spots including the Country Music Hall of Fame and The Grand Ole Opry House were flooded.
"You never think something like this will happen in Nashville," said Stan Milstead of Tulsa, Okla., as he watched the dark brown river waters creep deeper into downtown, where authorities had closed off streets.
Weekend storms dumped more than 13 inches of rain in two days in the Nashville area, leading to a quick rise of the Cumberland River and its tributaries. The swollen river crested Monday evening at nearly 12 feet above flood stage in Nashville and was not expected to drop below its flood stage of 40 feet until Wednesday morning, said Mark Rose with the National Weather Service.
Though the rain stopped falling on Monday, the river continued to inch upward in some places. Authorities and volunteers in fishing boats, an amphibious tour bus and a canoe scooped up about 500 trapped vacationers at the Wyndham Resort along the river near Opryland. Rescuers had to steer through a maze of underwater hazards including submerged cars, some with their tops barely visible above floodwaters the color of milk chocolate.
Bill Crousser was riding his Jet Ski past a neighbor's house when he rescued a man, his wife and their dog moments before flames from a fire in the garage broke through the roof. The woman was taken to a hospital to be examined.
"We just got the hell out of there," Crousser said.
As flood waters receded elsewhere, more victims were found in Nashville and other parts on Tennessee on Monday evening.
One body was discovered in a wooded area outside a Nashville supermarket, and another woman was found dead in a home on the western side of town, city spokeswoman Gwen Hopkins said Monday night. Police said a man's body was found in standing water in Bellevue, one of the hardest hit parts of Nashville; nearby the body of an elderly woman was recovered in her home.
The weekend storms also killed six people in Mississippi and four in Kentucky, including one man whose truck ran off the road and into a flooded creek. One person was also killed by a tornado in western Tennessee.