News Talk 94.1/AM 1600 Where The Upper Cumberland Talks
One person remains missing after a large rush of water left several people stranded at Cummins Falls Sunday.
“There was probably 50-people or more that had to be assisted out of the park and were able to come out under their own power,” Jackson County Public Information Officer Derek Woolbright said. “We currently have one victim that is unaccounted for and we are still attempting to locate that person’s whereabouts.”
The Putnam County Rescue Squad posted to Facebook that a 2-year-old child is missing. A press release from the Jackson County EMA said the identity of the missing victim is not being released at this time.
Woolbright said at least 13-people were swept away by the water. Rescue attempts are still underway for a number of those people.
“It’s our belief that we’re going to be able to get those 13 people out within the next little while,” Woolbright said. “Of course, we are being hindered right now as it becomes dark but it’s our belief that those 13 should be evacuated from the park.”
The Putnam County Rescue Squad’s Swiftwater Team is assisting Jackson County with the rescue operation. Woolbright said the Tennessee Highway Patrol is also involved in the operation.
“We are currently utilizing a helicopter from the Tennessee Highway Patrol,” Woolbright said. “Not to actually evacuate patients this time, but as a searching tool as darkness comes.”
A THP helicopter was used to evacuate several people who became stranded during a flash flood at Cummins Falls in 2017.
