Our area of TN was blasted with a devastating flood since the time I last posted. We were without power for 5 days and without any water at all for 4. Our water is still not usable for internal consumption due to contamination. 44 thousand homes destroyed in Nashville. Many lives lost and damages to property in the millions. I saw things I never thought I would see. Had more than fleeting moments of anxiety for my safety and hours of worry for family and friends.
Our personal loss has been minimal. Flooring in our basement ruined. Thanks to friends and family fighting water for three days and three nights with me our sheetrock was saved. Now just drying things out and trying to keep mildew and mold at bay. My Mother in Law was evacuated through the rising flood waters in her yard. Her home is miraculously safe as far as water damage to the inside but her shops, driveway, yard and part of the foundation of her house sustained severe water damage. I was able to take a lot of images over the past week. My emotions were numb most of the time because I was in survival mode. Things like water and food were suddenly of paramount importance. Since TheMan got back from Malawi and everybody is safe I’ve been able to crawl out of my little emotional bunker and FEEL through what happened. Just two miles from our house there are many homes that were destroyed.
I want to tell the story of what happened, how it happened but it’s too convoluted. I’ve gotten confused about which days what things happened on. Sleep was scarce for several days and it only added to the surreality of the overall experience. Instead I’ll tell the story of the pictures I was able to take and what I remember surrounding each image.
When my Mother in law was Evacuated she was told that her house would probably be destroyed/flooded. As one might imagine this caused a great deal of distress, worry and concern since she does not have flood insurance and did not have time to put anything up high or save much more than her laptop and the clothes on her back. As soon as the rain let up my brother and I in his large diesel truck attempted to go through some road blocks and flooded roads to see if her house had made it through. On Hwy. 50 from Centerville to Columbia we were forced to stop because the water was too high to ford. As far as we could see water covered the highway. We both felt a sinking feeling in the pit of our stomachs because this was only a couple of miles from my mother in law’s home and her house was at a much lower elevation than the road that was covered over. After we tried unsuccessfully to get through the water I noticed a couple resolutely walking ahead on foot. They slowly slugged through the water staying close to each other. My heart skipped a beat and I felt a surge of anxiety as the woman’s feet slipped or were pulled out from under her by an unexpected current when they were almost around the bend. The man quickly grabbed her upright, she regained her balance and they walked on. The scene haunted me. Why were they risking their lives to walk through flood waters? The one time they looked back at us they looked worn and maybe even a little in shock. I wish I had called to them to see if we could help. Wish I knew if they made it across the flooded bridge that was just out of our sight. My brother backed the truck up until we could turn around and we headed back the way we came.
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