Tennessee’s Waterville Dam Suffers ‘Catastrophic Failure’: What We Know

Residents of Newport, Tennessee, have been ordered to evacuate the town “immediately” as heavy rainfall and flash flooding stemming from Hurricane Helene makes its way north.
Cocke County Mayor Rob Mathis wrote his Facebook page just before 3 p.m. EST Friday that the Waterville Dam “HAS SUFFERED A CATASTROPHIC FAILURE” and ordered the “EVACUATION ALL OF DOWNTOWN NEWPORT IMMEDIATELY.”
Mathis posted about half an hour later that he was declaring a state of emergency for the county, which is located roughly 60 miles east of Knoxville.
It is unclear what caused damage to the dam, although it comes as officials in eastern Tennessee have warned of devastating flooding in the area. Mathis wrote in a post earlier in the day Friday that “[a]ll county and city emergency resources are currently fully engaged in water rescue and evacuation operations.”
“We are still several hours from the expected high-water mark,” read the message, which Mathis posted at 11:32 a.m. EST. “If water is rising near you, PLEASE DO NOT WAIT UNTIL THE WATER REACHES YOU. Make plans to escape BEFORE you need assistance.”
This is a developing story and will be updated with additional information.