CV NEWS FEED // In the aftermath of severe flooding caused by Hurricane Helene, local Tennessee volunteers stepped up to clear debris from Jackson Bridge, a vital passage over the Nolichucky River, according to a report from local news source wkrn.com.
According to the report, the residents mobilized on September 28 to clear the critical bridge which had been rendered impassable by the flooding from Hurricane Helene.
Due to the hurricane, “[f]ewer than a third of the 13 bridges spanning the Nolichucky between Taylor Bridge and Poplar Bridge southwest of Greeneville were passable as of Sunday afternoon,” the report stated, adding that some of them are destroyed completely.
The report shared that using personal equipment, the volunteers worked diligently to remove mud and fallen trees obstructing the bridge. Their efforts were complemented by workers from the Washington County Highway Department, who were also clearing debris from the opposite bank.
Many volunteers had understood the urgency of the situation for residents stranded by the road blockage. One volunteer working to clear the roads was Tracy Penley, who expressed to wkrn.com her personal urgency in the situation: as a diabetic, she is down to her last “about a week’s worth” of pen needles.
The report shared that by early afternoon, the joint efforts of volunteers and highway workers had paid off, with the bridge cleared enough to allow foot traffic and emergency vehicles. In a September 29 press conference, Washington County Mayor Joe Grandy expressed his gratitude for the community’s efforts and support.
The Jackson Bridge is approximately 25 miles from the town of Greeneville, which was also severely impacted by the flooding.
As CatholicVote reported, many Greeneville residents have lost their homes to the flood, and the local hospital has been evacuated due to the town-wide water outage caused by the damage.
In Greeneville, residents have also been coming together in the wake of the flooding.
“There is definitely an intentional community effort to work through this disaster,” said Dr. John Kitsteiner, Medical Director of the Emergency Department at Greeneville Community Hospital, in an interview with CatholicVote.
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Author: Rachel Quackenbush
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