TEMA FLASH REPORT #10 – Tennessee Tornadoes and Severe Weather

Saturday, March 07, 2020 | 12:09pm

TEMA FLASH REPORT #10 – Tennessee Tornadoes and Severe Weather

March 7, 2020 – 12 p.m. CST

SEOC Activation: Level 3 – State of Emergency

HIGHLIGHTS

  • Gov. Bill Lee announces Major Disaster Declaration for three Tennessee counties.
  • Impacted individuals in the three, federally-declared counties can begin to register with FEMA and apply for federal assistance.
  • Visit TEMA’s tornado and severe weather recovery resource page for information on help and services for those affected by the deadly tornadoes and severe weather.
  • The State Emergency Operations Center (SEOC) in Nashville remains activated with a State of Emergency in place in Tennessee.
  • Tennessee has 24 confirmed storm-related fatalities.

CURRENT SITUATION
The federal government will provide assistance in three Tennessee counties – Davidson, Putnam, and Wilson – to help individuals and county governments begin the recovery process from the deadly March 3, tornadoes.

Impacted individuals in the three, federally-declared counties can begin now to register with FEMA and apply for federal assistance if eligible.  Individuals can begin the registration process by visiting www.disasterassistance.gov, or calling FEMA at 1-800-621-3362 or TTY 1-800-462-758, between 7 a.m. and 11 p.m., ET, 7 days a week.

The federal declaration will also provide reimbursement assistance to local jurisdictions in the declared counties to help with costs for debris removal and emergency protective measures during and following the severe weather event.

Joint preliminary damage assessments are forthcoming in order to secure assistance for the three remaining counties Benton, Carroll, and Gibson.

The National Weather Service (NWS) has confirmed seven tornadoes impacted Tennessee on March 3.

FATALITIES

  • The Tennessee Department of Health has confirmed 24 weather-related fatalities.
    • 18 fatalities in Putnam County
    • 3 fatalities in Wilson County
    • 2 fatalities in Davidson County
    • 1 fatality in Benton County.

POWER OUTAGES & UTILITIES

  • Around 9,700 remain without power in Tennessee.  This total includes 8,600 in Davidson County, less than 100 in Wilson County, and around 1,000 in Putnam and Jackson counties.

SHELTERS

DISASTER ASSISTANCE CENTERS

  • Currently there are 3 Disaster Assistance Centers.
    • Hermitage Community Center, 3720 James Kay Ln., Hermitage, TN
    • East Park Community Center, 600 Woodland St., Nashville, TN
    • Hadley Community Center, 1037 28th Ave. N., Nashville, TN
  • Disaster Assistance Centers are in the process of opening in Wilson and Putnam counties.

IMPORTANT WEBSITES and PHONE NUMBERS

  • Those who need help with debris removal can contact the Crisis Cleanup Hotline at 1-800-451-1954.
  • Airbnb is providing no-cost accommodations to Tennessee storm and tornado survivors.
  • Tennessee’s Crisis Phone Line is 1-855-274-7471 to speak with a trained mental health professional.
  • Volunteer in Davidson County to help survivors with Hands on Nashville, 615-298-1108 or www.hon.org.
  • Volunteer to help survivors in other Tennessee counties with TN VOAD.
  • Avoid disaster-related scams with help from the Tennessee Division of Consumer Affairs, 615-741-4743 or www.tn.gov/consumer.
  • Get help on filing insurance claims, hiring contractors, and reporting misconduct with the Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance, www.tn.gov/commerce. Mobile claims units are located in Nashville and Cookeville.
  • Local short-term or permanent rental housing options with the Tennessee Housing Development Agency, www.TNHousingSearch.org or 1-877-428-8844.
  • The Tennessee Department of Safety has Driver Services Mobile Units in Cookeville and Nashville to help those who have lost IDs during the storms, http://bit.ly/32PaTuF. 

FORECAST

Memphis: Mostly sunny with a high of 59 and a low of 42.

Nashville: Sunny with a high of 55 and a low of 34.

Knoxville:  Sunny with a high of 51 and a low of 33.