WAVERLY, Tenn. (AP) – The body of the final person missing from a devastating weekend flood in Middle Tennessee was recovered on Wednesday, prompting the search for victims to be suspended as the head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency toured the area.
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.
Waverly Police Chief Grant Gillespie’s voice broke as he announced the discovery of the final victim during an afternoon news conference. The death count stands at 20, according to county authorities, although the Tennessee Emergency Management Agency had put it at 17 at mid-day on Wednesday.
“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,” Gillespie said. “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.”
FEMA administrator Deanne Criswell and Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee toured the area together on Wednesday. The first stop was Waverly First Baptist Church, which is being used as a shelter, with a table of food lining one wall and small beds lining another.