Lawmakers Question TDEC Officials Over Cummins Falls Warning System

Upper Cumberland lawmakers questioned state officials Wednesday about why a flood warning system hasn’t been installed at Cummins Falls State Park.

State Representative Ryan Williams said having gauges installed at the top of the falls won’t be enough in the event of a flash flood.

“You will have enough time to be warned, but you won’t have enough time to get out. You’ll only have enough time to understand what it means to get to, much like in a fire, an area of refuge, which is why an area of refuge is so important,” Williams said. “Concurrently, with rain gauges, it needs to be about this platform. It needs to be about a place where our Highway Patrol doesn’t have to fly a helicopter into the bottom of a gorge to rescue people with the skids.”

The meeting comes nearly two weeks after a child drowned at the Cummins Falls gorge during unexpected flash flooding. That incident occurred after two people drowned during a similar incident two years prior.

Representative Cameron Sexton questioned the Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC) on why a warning system hasn’t been installed as promised following the 2017 incident.

“At some point, there was a discussion about the state using maintenance funds to fund this early warning system,” Sexton said. “Last I heard, there’s $5 million in that maintenance fund. So why are we two years removed from that and we don’t have that yet? What’s been the issue?”

TDEC Deputy Commissioner Jim Bryson responded by saying the process was delayed while Tennessee Tech was working to create the system.

“The process was using the system Tennessee Tech recommended because they were currently using that system in other capacities,” Bryson said. “However, Procurement notified the parties that there was no justification for a sole-source contract and stopped the process to allow bidding. Procurement identified another potential supplier and questioned Tennessee Tech whether that additional supplier would indeed bed a potential supplier for bidding purposes.”

Bryson said the process stopped after Tennessee Tech never responded with an opinion on the new system supplier. The warning system was then never installed as state and park officials had to rely on predetermined water measurements in conjunction with the National Weather Service to evacuate the gorge.

State officials have blocked access to the gorge following the child’s drowning earlier this month to investigate. Williams said the temporary closure of the gorge greatly affects the lives of residents and business owners near the park.

“We have people who have sat here in the audience since literally 1 p.m. today to try to find out how their businesses, their families, and their lives are going to be impacted because how they provide for their families is closed now for business,” Williams said. “This is a huge tourism draw not just for the Upper Cumberland, but it is for across the state so we want it to be safe.”

TDEC Commissioner David Salyers reported three interim gauges were installed within the watershed leading to Cummins Falls Wednesday. However, access to the gorge will remain closed until a permanent system is installed.