Flash Flood — Campbell, Tennessee

2019-06-07 to 2019-06-08 · near La Follette, Campbell, Tennessee

Event narrative

Several small drainages off of the nearby hills north of town converge and then go under Hwy 63 near the middle school. Both Hwy 63 and some parking lots of businesses near the middle school were being covered by flowing water at this time. Water continued to rise such that by 8:00 p.m. major flash flooding was developing. At its worst, knee deep water was in structures on the north side of Hwy 63, while apartments and two churches on lower ground on the south side of the highway took four to eight feet of water. Elsewhere, a manufactured home on Cedar Creek near Fincastle was washed off of its foundation. Numerous roads were closed and vehicles flooded in the event. Radar estimated over 6 inches of rain near LaFollette in less than three hours.

Wider weather episode

Convection continuously developed across Middle and Eastern Tennessee during the late afternoon and evening in a moist and unstable environment; additionally aided by a weak upper level low over the Mid South. The event was mainly characterized by flooding rain on the Cumberland Plateau with extension in the valley in Central East Tennessee.

View location on OpenStreetMap → (36.2998, -84.1713)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 833666. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.