October 1, 2024
NEWPORT, Tenn. — Eastern Tennessee experienced significant and widespread damage Friday afternoon due to torrential rains and high winds from Hurricane Helene.
Helene made landfall in the Florida Panhandle late Thursday and forcefully progressed through Eastern Georgia into Tennessee along the Appalachian Mountains, causing severe flooding and wind damage in numerous East Tennessee counties. Newport, Irwin, Hampton and other cities have been affected.
“It has been a catastrophic afternoon,” said Randy C. Davis, Tennessee Baptist Mission Board executive director, on Friday afternoon. “Our hearts are broken for the people in Cocke, Washington, Unicoi, Greene and other counties that may be eventually affected by the severe weather and its aftermath.
“We are getting news of lost houses and churches. The needs will be great. Tennessee Baptist Disaster Relief teams are already on the move. Tennessee Baptists can certainly be praying, but if individuals and churches would like to go beyond that, the most immediate need will be available funds to supply the immediate needs of DR teams as they begin to serve and help,” Davis said.
Troy Rust, director of missions for Holston Baptist Association, told the B&R that Enon Baptist Church was flooded to the roofline due to its location beside Clark’s Creek and its close proximity to Nolichucky River. The area has no bridges for vehicle traffic, and currently only one road is open to foot/atv traffic.
Most of the bridges are washed away and the 107 corridor has no water or electricity, he said, adding that most residents have little access to retail.
Rust said that two churches, Cherry Grove and University Parkway, are providing shelter. “This (damage) far exceeds the flood of 1977,” he said.
As of Saturday morning, there were 33 people missing from Unicoi County.
Garry Maddox, disaster relief mobilization specialist for TBMB, said that as of Friday afternoon, “all of our East Tennessee DR teams that are available to go out are now responding.”
Wes Jones, disaster relief specialist for the TBMB, said DR teams will continue to assess the situation over the next couple of days and will set up an incident command post — or possibly two — later this weekend or Monday.
The flooding was caused by an abundance of water flowing from two lakes in North Carolina. The Walters Dam near the Waterville Community southwest of Asheville was initially reported as a catastrophic failure with that water washing out part of I-40 and flooding Newport. That report was later amended by the National Weather Service stating that the dam had not failed but was unable to contain the rising water behind it.
Don Owen, director of God’s Warehouse in Morristown and DR director for Nolichucky Baptist Association, told the B&R on Friday that his team has been working with EMA in that area and have 60 jobs, almost all of which have been tree removal on power lines. There are power outages in Morristown and the larger surrounding area.
Kaye Thomas, volunteer coordinator for Tennessee Baptist Disaster Relief and member at Sevierville First Baptist Church, reported the water level in the Nolichucky River was predicted to crest Saturday at 21 feet, two feet higher than its previous record.
The community of Hampton has been completely cut off by the flooding, and 12 families have completely lost their homes, Thomas said.
Tim Grooms, pastor of Riverview Baptist Church in Newport, told the Baptist and Reflector on Friday afternoon, “Our church building basement is flooded but we aren’t allowed to go to the area due to the current dangers of constant rising waters. This is the worst flood of my lifetime.”
The Knoxville News Sentinel reported that the Pigeon River at Newport rose to over three times its flood stage by 3 p.m. on Sept. 27, surpassing record levels when it reached over 26 feet high. The previous record was 23 feet, 4 inches. The water continues to rise.
Similarly, the French Broad River at Newport was expected to reach more than double its flood stage by the end of the day, the newspaper reported. By 2:45 p.m. it had reached over 18 feet but was expected to reach 23 feet. The record for the river is 24 feet, the report said.
WATE (Channel 6) reported that Cocke County mayor Rob Mathis is urging people to “relocate immediately” if they are near water. He has officially declared a State of Emergency for Cocke County.
