Dolly Parton’s Dollywood theme park in Tennessee hit by flash flooding

PIGEON FORGE, Tenn. – One individual was injured at Tennessee’s well-known Dollywood amusement park on Sunday after a strong thunderstorm moved throughout the world and produced torrential rain that brought on flash flooding.

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Heavy precipitation was reported throughout Knox and Sevier counties on Sunday, prompting the Nationwide Climate Service workplace in Morristown, Tennessee, to situation a Flash Flood Warning for the world, together with Pigeon Forge, the place Dollywood is situated.

The FOX Forecast Heart says 2.5 inches of rain fell in a single hour, and 4 inches in complete fell throughout the Pigeon Forge space on Sunday.

Pictures and movies from Dollywood on the time the flash flooding was reported present water masking walkways and parking tons as folks, some with strollers, wade by means of the dashing water to attempt to get indoors.

Movies additionally present flooding creeping into a number of outlets throughout the amusement park.

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Different movies present a Dollywood car parking zone surrounded by floodwaters, trapping quite a few automobiles inundated by the rising water. Individuals can be seen making an attempt to get into flooded automobiles.

Bailey and Sophie Elkins had been among the many Dollywood guests trapped by the flash flooding. The sisters stated they needed to wait about 2 hours for the water to recede earlier than leaving the park.

The ponds and creeks all through the park shortly stuffed, enhancing the flooding, based on the Elkins sisters.

“When that rain down poured it actually heightened the growing rise of the water in these ponds and what not, so they only overflowed so fast,” Bailey Elkins stated. 

After the flooding, Dollywood officers launched an announcement saying one minor harm was reported amid the reviews of the extreme climate and flooding.

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“I believe the staff dealt with it with such grace, and so they had been calm and picked up,” Sophie Elkins stated. “It undoubtedly was a whole lot of water all of sudden.”

The Elkins stated they had been in a position to depart by driving by means of a service entrance a number of hours after the flooding began. 

“Dollywood is supporting visitors whose automobiles had been affected by this climate occasion, and cleanup crews have been deployed,” Dollywood stated in an announcement.

Dollywood is anticipated to reopen for enterprise on Monday afternoon.

“Park officers will proceed to evaluate circumstances and updates will probably be posted to our social media pages as extra data turns into accessible,” the park stated.