3 flood deaths confirmed in Unicoi Co., K-9s deployed for missing people
UNICOI COUNTY, Tenn. (WJHL) — Day five of recovery operations in Unicoi County started with emergency officials confirming three flood deaths.
The Unicoi County Emergency Management Agency (EMA) held a press conference at 10 a.m. on Tuesday at Unicoi County Hospital. News Channel 11 livestreamed the briefing, and it can be viewed above.
Impact Plastics addresses ‘missing and deceased employees’ after floods
On Monday evening, Public Information Officer for the Tennessee All Hazards Incident Management Team Myron Hughes said Unicoi County had sent three bodies to the William B. Jenkins Forensic Center.
“The Tennessee Department of Health (TDH) has confirmed that all three bodies that were transported from Unicoi County died due to the flooding, weather-related injuries,” Hughes said.
Hughes said those three bodies have been the only ones located in the county as of Tuesday.
The Tennessee Emergency Management Agency (TEMA) stated in its latest disaster report on Monday night that a total of six weather-related deaths have been confirmed by the TDH so far.
The identities of the deceased will not be released by officials, but Hughes said the families of the deceased have been contacted. The locations of those bodies at the time of recovery were also not released.
“The latest number from TEMA’s Flash Report is that 10 are still missing, and we are working diligently to establish some temporary communication solutions for the county to help with that,” Hughes said.
TEMA confirms 6 flood deaths in latest update
K-9 units have been deployed to help locate missing people in the county, Hughes told members of the media.
Emergency officials did not specify how many of those 10 missing people were employed at the Impact Plastics facility in the county’s industrial park. Family members of missing Impact Plastics employees were at the press conference on Tuesday, as they have been at previous briefings.
Hughes said debris-clearing work is continuing along Interstate 26 and the industrial park in Unicoi County. Support teams are conducting operations in the mountainous regions of the county to deliver supplies to people stranded.
The EMA also provided a link for those who would like to sign up to volunteer to help with flood recovery efforts.
The TDH recommends anyone who was injured or came in contact with debris and contaminated floodwater get a hepatitis A and tetanus shot if it has been longer than five years since their last shot.
Anyone who needs help cleaning up debris can call 844-965-1386 for free assistance.
Emergency officials are also reevaluating the curfew currently in place.
“We’re gonna reevaluate that,” EMA Director and Incident Commander Jimmy Erwin said. “The biggest thing about the curfew is to keep people away from the affected area.”
As of Tuesday, Erwin said 10-15 people are being cared for at the emergency shelters set up in the county.
The Unicoi County EMA has scheduled its next press conference for 3 p.m. on Wednesday. The EMA also posts updates to its Facebook page.
Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WJHL | Tri-Cities News & Weather.