Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam said President Obama told him today that federal assistance is on the way for the storm-shattered state.
"It's horrific, the impact," Haslam said in a news conference at Apison Elementary School, staging area for volunteers in the hard-hit community. Of nine fatalities so far in Hamilton County, most were in Apison.
Haslam was in Bradley County earlier today, where at least nine people lost their lives.
"We can help rebuild, but we can't replace lives lost," he said.
Haslam said 33 people are known to have died in the day-long assault from deadly storms Thursday.
But Jim Bassham, director of the Tennessee Emergency Management Agency, said that search and rescue efforts still are under way and the death toll isn't final.
Bassham said the next step, damage assessments, likely will begin next week.
U.S. Sen. Bob Corker, a former mayor of Chattanooga, accompanied Haslam.
"We've heard tremendous stories of personal tragedy, people having been at the wrong place at the wrong time. But Tennesseans will rebuild as they always do."