Tennessee jewelry store heavily damaged in floods

Jewelry store owner Renee Muha on flood devastating businesses in Waverly, Tennessee

The body of the final victim in a devastating weekend flood in Tennessee was recovered Wednesday, bringing the total death toll to 20, authorities said. 

The recovery effectively suspended search efforts for the victims as the head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency toured the area.

Dustin Shadownes, of Ashland City Fire Department, searches a creek for missing persons along with a cadaver dog, Monday, Aug. 23, 2021, in Waverly, Tenn.  
(AP)

“We had resumed the searching this morning in the areas that we thought were most likely to — where our victim was most likely to be found,” Waverly Police Chief Grant Gillespie said at an afternoon press conference, his voice cracking. “We’ve used dogs, heavy equipment. It’s just been very painstaking because it’s a tedious process to get in there and look for victims. … Today was about our victim, and we found her.”

Saturday’s flooding took out houses, roads, cellphone towers and telephone lines, with rainfall that more than tripled forecasts and shattered the state record for one-day rainfall. More than 270 homes were destroyed and 160 took major damage, according to the Humphreys County Emergency Management Agency. 

FEMA administrator Deanne Criswell and Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee toured the area together on Wednesday. Lee became choked up when talking to those temporarily living in Waverly First Baptist Church as a shelter

“Tragedy comes in a moment. But what we’ve seen here is the intersection of tragedy and hope,” said Lee.

Ernest Hollis looks for items at his granddaughter’s house that was devastated by floodwaters, Monday, Aug. 23, 2021, in Waverly, Tenn. 
(AP)

Lee also said President Biden called him Tuesday and offered his support, noting that the Biden administration quickly approved the state’s request for an emergency declaration, which frees up federal aid to help with recovery efforts in Humphreys County.

The small city of Waverly, some 60 miles west of Nashville, was the community hit hardest by the flood. A public housing project there along the banks of Trace Creek was in ruins.

The Waverly Housing Authority was working on Wednesday to try to find housing for the residents in nearby towns, Executive Director Sherry Lynch said. 

Meanwhile, residents picked through their mud-caked possessions and searched bushes for belongings that were washed away. Strewn across the ground were the remnants of their lives — Christmas wreaths, T-shirts, VHS taps, baseball cards. Every vertical object left standing was plastered with debris, wrapped tightly around poles and trees in the direction of the current.

With the search for victims over, efforts turned to clean-up and recovery on Wednesday. All of the deaths would be investigated by detectives, Gillespie said. 

The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

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