Storms flooded McCaysville, Georgia, and neighboring Copperhill, Tennessee, overnight on 4–5 November. Crews continued searching homes as unsafe roads closed schools and the McCaysville Water System came under a boil-water advisory.
More than 30 people had been rescued by boat in McCaysville by mid-morning 5 November, police chief Michael Earley said, after storms sent floodwater through the Georgia city and neighboring Copperhill, Tennessee.
The count was not final: crews were still going door-to-door later that morning, and some areas remained inaccessible. The Fannin County Emergency Management Agency said in a later update that swiftwater teams had rescued about 57 people overnight.
McCaysville had already suffered severe flooding in August, when a boil-water advisory was issued and the police department and post office buildings closed. The police department was flooded again, Atlanta News First said.
Copperhill lies across the Toccoa River from McCaysville. Flooding made residential streets in Fannin County impassable. Earley said water reached 6 to 7 feet deep in some downtown areas and rose above the roofs of some homes; rushing currents made it difficult for rescue boats to navigate.
The National Weather Service reported up to 5 inches (13 cm) of rain in McCaysville by Thursday morning. In a later update, Earley estimated that the city received 6 to 7 inches overnight.
Copperhill officials warned some residents to evacuate, while Fannin County emergency management said numerous residents still needed evacuation, including people in areas crews could not reach. Copperhill City Hall, McCaysville City Hall and the Fannin County Recreation Department opened as shelters.
Early 5 November, county emergency management spokesperson Robert Poole said crews were trying to reach a man who had called to say his car was swept down a creek. Poole said contact with the man had been lost and described him as still trapped. Earley said later that morning that no serious injuries had been reported; a firefighter injured after a propane tank explosion was expected to recover.
Governor Brian Kemp said the Georgia Emergency Management and Homeland Security Agency was leading a response using boats and aircraft, with help from Tennessee first responders. Georgia Department of Natural Resources game wardens were also helping search-and-rescue operations in Fannin and Murray counties, county officials said.
Poole said several fires in buildings as lightning moved through had already stretched emergency resources before continued rain brought water-rescue calls. Earley said the city could not reach the garage holding its dump trucks, tractors and other cleanup equipment.
Fannin and Gilmer county schools canceled classes November 5 because roads were hazardous. The county emergency agency said the McCaysville Water System was under a boil-water advisory until further notice.
Emergency personnel planned to check every home in McCaysville to make sure no one remained inside. County emergency management said floodwaters were beginning to recede but warned that roads could remain flooded, damaged or unsafe. It urged residents to avoid unnecessary travel and not drive through floodwater, warning that conditions could worsen even after rain stops.
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