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Weakley County dodges Mother Nature’s full wrath

Weakley County dodges Mother Nature’s full wrath
Weakley County dodges Mother Nature's full wrath | Weakley County, Mother Nature, weekend flooding
FLOOD, WHAT FLOOD? – The driver of a JEEP Wrangler successfully crossed a pond-covered roadway between Sidonia and Kenton Sunday afternoon after torrential amounts of rain throughout the weekend left many county roads in nearly impassable condition. Weakley County fared much better than its neighbors, however, as Gibson, Carroll, Dyer , Madison and parts of Obion county are still under water this week.

Mother Nature was much kinder to those in Weakley County than its neighbors after a series of severe thunderstorms ravaged parts of West and Middle Tennessee over the weekend.
According to Weakley County Emergency Management Director Jamison Peevyhouse, Weakley County was “very fortunate, once again.”
Peevyhouse said the county’s southerly neighbors in Gibson, Carroll and Madison counties felt the brunt of the significant amounts of rain dumped over Tennessee on Saturday and Sunday.
The WCEMD said on Sunday that ambulance crews had a difficult time trying to transport patients out of the county to Madison County hospitals. They were re-routed through Dyersburg, but after today, that path could change.
The City of Dyersburg has already declared a state of emergency in anticipation of high waters. Peevyhouse said officials had already evacuated a portion of town expected to be under water once the river crests.
While the portion of the Obion River between Martin and Union City had left surrounding fields under water, the river is expected to cause significant damage in Dyersburg.
“You have to remember that rivers and creeks on both sides of our county all flow to Dyersburg and they are going to get hit hard,” Peevyhouse commented on Monday.
With such a widespread issue of flooding in Gibson and Carroll counties, local emergency responders spent much of their day on Sunday lending a helping hand.
Peevyhouse reported 19 people from three different Weakley County agencies spent Sunday afternoon in Gibson County helping with search and rescue efforts.
“The most difficult part was getting back into the county. We crossed a river that had risen four inches in the early afternoon. On the way home, that same river had risen four feet. I just want to stress to people traveling to turn around, don’t drown,” Peevyhouse said. Areas under water as of Monday were Hwy. 45 between Greenfield and Bradford, Shades Bridge Road outside of Greenfield, Kimery Store Road outside of Greenfield and Hwy. 89 between Sidonia and Kenton.
Much of the southern portion of the county was impacted by flooding and water over some roadways remain an issue. For road conditions, visit the Tennessee Department of Transportation’s Web site and follow the links to Smart Way.
WCP 5.04.10