Dangerously high water in Crockett County traps car

CROCKETT COUNTY, Tenn. — “It’s unsafe for people to drive down through here,” Rick Sins said.

On Highway 189 between Maury City and Friendship in Crockett County, the water was so high Thursday that it trapped a car. The driver inside had to be rescued by boat early Thursday morning.

“There’s a problem that needs to be solved, but I don’t see anybody trying,” Sins said.

Rick Sins and his wife have lived in their home for over 30 years. He says when it rains, it floods.

“The problem has gotten worse, and I’ve talked to the highway department, and they said it’s basically ‘levee wars.’ People get properties, it floods, then they build levees around them to keep water off of it so they can flood it,” Sins said.

It’s a problem that has drained his pockets.

“Our house has had to be torn out and rebuilt three times since we have been here,” Sins recalled.

Residents say this is just one of many times cars have become stuck in the water.

“There was one lady who flipped her car when she hit the water,” Sins said. That’s just one incident.

“There was a family right down here where if they opened the door the water was going to come in, and they were drifting into the ditch. So basically I had to open my window so they could climb through it,” Sins said.

The Tennessee Department of Transportation says they will block off the road until it becomes safe to drive, but in situations like these they can never give a time frame.

“When we get a lot of rain, it turns our little highway into a little river. You could get a boat and paddle down it,” Sins said.

The driver of the car made it out safely. TDOT says they will continue to block the road.