In memory of the lives lost during the devastating floods in the Humphreys County area over the weekend, flags over the Tennessee State Capitol will fly at half-staff until Friday.
Governor Bill Lee said, “We continue to pray for the Tennesseans experiencing loss & heartbreak & our courageous first responders.”
Meanwhile, Humphreys County Sheriff Chris Davis said overnight recovery and damage assessments remain active. The current count of confirmed fatalities is 18 with three confirmed missing.
Davis said, “The discrepancy in the fatality count reported previously was due to a death by natural causes in the emergency room that was mistakenly added to the count; and a John Doe and Jane Doe, that after being positively Identified, remained on the list as unidentified.”
“We found these discrepancies yesterday and paused reporting the count until we could investigate,” stated Waverly Chief of Public Safety Grant Gillespie. “We’ve now performed a one-hundred percent identification of each victim and have an accurate count.”
Damage assessments are in process and the results as of Tuesday at 4:30 p.m. are as follows:
• 509 homes identified – 271 destroyed (100%), 160 major damage (50-100%), 28 minor damage (25-50%), 19 affected (0-25%)
• 8 public facilities identified
• 44 commercial properties identified
Governor Bill Lee has announced approval of a Major Disaster Declaration for Humphreys County. The Major Disaster Declaration will make FEMA’s Individual Assistance program to individuals and households in Humphreys County.
Individuals can apply for FEMA’s IA program in the following ways:
1. Apply online at www.DisasterAssistance.gov.
2. Call the application phone number at 1-800-621-3362 (TTY: 800-462-7585), 6 a.m. until 10:00 p.m.
Central Time.
3. Multilingual operators are available.
• The Reunification Center has reunited 139 families since August 21 and is now closed.
• East Main Street in Waverly and adjoining side streets remain closed. Highway 70 between
Waverly and McEwen is closed for repairs to the railroad.
• Medical staff is providing Tetanus and Hepatitis A vaccines the shelters: First Baptist Church in
Waverly and Waverly Church of Christ. Anyone who was in the flood waters should receive a Tetanus shot. People who experience sudden onset of severe gastrointestinal issues (vomiting, diarrhea) may need the Hepatitis A vaccine.
• Residents who are cleaning up from flood damage are asked to document and if possible, make pictures of items being removed from their homes before being disposed of. This will enable agencies to completely account for losses due to flood damage.
• People interested in volunteering should call (931) 888-8011 or (931) 888-8012 or go to the Dollar Tree Parking lot located at 505 W. Main Street where response agencies are located.
• The boil water order remains in effect for those utilizing the Waverly Water Supply.
Monetary donations are being accepted at the following areas:
First Federal Bank in Waverly through the Humphreys Homeless Fund, and City of Waverly Fund United Way: text FLOODRELIEF to 269-89, donate through Facebook at @uwhumphreys, or online at www.unitedwayhumphreys.com
Online at Tennessee Emergency Response Fund.
Photo by Governor Bill Lee office.