Hurricane Helene brought back memories to Waverly residents who experienced their own deadly flooding in 2021.
HUMPHREYS COUNTY, Tenn. (WKRN) — Hurricane Helene brought back memories to Waverly residents who experienced their own deadly flooding in 2021.
In total, 20 people died across Humphreys County, and Waverly Cash Saver co-owner John Curtis remembered eight people at his store climbing on top of an office area where they waited hours for help.
“It’s been heart-wrenching watching what’s going on in east Tennessee and then down through Florida,” Curtis said. “It brings back a lot of not-so-fond memories.”
It took four months of clearing mud until the town’s grocery store could reopen.
Curtis said some of the things that helped him most were trucks and equipment coming through to clear debris, hundred-foot extension cords, industrial lighting, and those who stopped by to offer support.
“It’s probably one of the hardest things that, personally we’ve ever been through. But you will get through it, and it’ll change you forever,” Curtis said. “What you’re going through day after day, seven days a week is just exhausting. To have somebody come and just lift you up in prayer, that is huge, or was huge, for us. I would encourage people to do that for these people that are going through this now. It’s a tough time.”
The Humphreys County Sheriff’s Office has taken what they learned to in 2021 help East Tennessee. Several members are currently assisting in Unicoi County, but Humphreys County Sheriff Chris Davis said that it brings flashbacks to mind.
“It helps me deal with the things in the past,” Davis said. “Being able to be here and share some of the knowledge and things that me and my guys have gotten, or that we went through ,and how we can apply it here,” Davis said.
Davis said the damage he’s seen in Unicoi County is more consolidated compared to the miles it spread Humphreys County. However, he said that as in Waverly, recovery will be physically and emotionally draining.
“A lot of people refer to it as PTSD. I’ve got it, we’ve got it,” Davis said. “It’s a long, long process to try to get that decompressed, to let go, to deal with those thoughts and feelings… It’s going to be a long road to recovery, it’s nothing that’s going to happen tomorrow, next week, or next year.”
Waverly Cash Saver owners plan to send a truck full of equipment to East Tennessee. They encourage any business owners seeking advice on how to rebuild to reach out. Cutis said he would be happy to walk them step-by-step through what he went through to re-open his grocery store.