OBION COUNTY, Tenn. — With hundreds of lives in danger following a levee failure in Rives, Tennessee, multiple counties sent emergency service members and equipment to rescue potential flood victims.
“We seem to go through this about two or three times a year,” said Campbell Rice, the Chief of the Rives Fire Department. “However, it’s never this severe, this has been a so-called, perfect storm if you wanna call it. It’s not really ever flooded this bad.”
County officials said issues began on Saturday afternoon when the water began to rise.
Following severe storms throughout the Mid-South on Saturday, the levee near Rives along the Obion River has failed, resulting in rapid flooding in surrounding areas.
“This time, it’s worse than usual and so we are having to deal with it differently than we usually do because of the potential danger it presents and because of already having so many homes that have been flooded,” said Obion County Mayor Steve Carr.
Chief Rice said this is not the first time the levee has broken.
“It broke about two years ago,” Rice said. “It hasn’t been repaired since that point and when the waters came down from up North, it just kind of started filling up from the north end on the west side of our railroad tracks.”
In response, Millington, Shelby County, Tipton County and others sent emergency service personnel and equipment to the area of the flood.
According to the Tipton County Fire Department, approximately 200 residents needed to be rescued from the rising Obion River at one point.
About 312 people live in the community.
“It’s a difficult day for many of the residents in Rives and our hearts go out to them. I have been on site most of the day and I am proud of the work my deputies have done in all stages of this response,” said Obion County Sheriff Karl Jackson. “We now have numerous agencies assisting us in the search for and rescue of those who are stranded by the flood waters.”
The Millington Fire Department said they were notified at 7:30 a.m. of extensive flooding in the area and the request for water teams was issued.
Since the arrival of more assistance, the Rives Volunteer Fire Department and others have been working around the clock to rescue people and bring them to safety.
Now, hundreds of residents have been taken to Ridgemont Elementary School where they are receiving shelter food and other necessities.
“Our hearts are broken seeing the adults and children forced to leave their homes. Thank you to Ridgemont School and all the army of volunteers who brought food, blankets, drinks, and other necessities for the responders as well as the displaced families,” Sheriff Jackson said. “Please lift up the displaced families and responders in your prayers. These missions are incredibly dangerous.”
Due to the severity of the flooding, Mayor Carr is urging residents to get out before it’s too late.
“Actually it’s a mandatory evacuation at this point because the electricity is soon gonna be turned off in that area,” Carr said. “And we’re gonna have some freezing temperatures, it’s gonna be a really bad situation to be there without heat and be surrounded by water.”
Because of the magnitude of flood damage in Obion County, the stages of recovery and restoration will take some time.
“The long term is gonna be a big operation, with the recovery, trying to help people with their homes and trying to give assistance to them, that’s gonna be a long term operation,” said Collierville Fire Chief John Selberg.
The support and assistance that’s already been displayed within the community and across the state show that this journey to recovery won’t be taken alone.
The American Red Cross has shelters available for flood victims. The locations can be found here.
