WAVERLY, Tenn. (WTVF) — We are getting an unbelievable new glimpse of what the Waverly flooding looked like, and just how fast the water moved in and changed the situation from bad to worse.
It's video from the home surveillance cameras of Michael Phillips, a Waverly man who lost his home who says neighbors saved the lives of him and his family.
It's video that may be hard for some people to watch. It shows the sheer power of the flood waters that washed over Humphreys County.
"Looking back, I was telling people that water went from nothing to several feet to several feet of water in my house in a matter of in a matter of five to 10 minutes, and as I was thinking about that I was like, 'It wasn’t that fast,' but actually seeing it, it was that fast," Phillips said.
"By the time we got the kids up three minutes later, just a few minutes later the water was already coming up into the boards into the house, probably about a foot of water," Phillips said. "There’s no way even in a couple feet of water, when it’s raging, you can’t maneuver in it."
Phillips says the only other option was to head to his roof for safety.
"I think the main thing I think about is the lives that were lost," Phillips said. "I have had two cousins that perished in it, and had a friend try to save somebody else by jumping in, and he drowned."
"Why? Just, why? is the main thing that I think about, I had never seen anything like this before," Phillips said.
"I just want everyone to continue the prayers for those who lost loved ones," Phillips said. "It’s going to be a process, but I think we’re going to get back to a good place, a good place eventually."
