Flood recovery raises questions about lost, found property

DECATUR COUNTY, Tenn. — As the Tennessee River recedes, residents are starting to find out what property they’re missing.

“You can see sand piled up and debris everywhere, and people are coming in and cleaning out the lower portions of their houses where the water got into them,” Decatur County Sheriff Keith Byrd said.

Now that residents are able to get back into their homes, they’re finding things in the debris that aren’t theirs.

“We’re finding docks and boats and all kinds of debris and picnic tables and you name it that’s floated away from wherever and floated up into the woods and things like that,” Byrd said.

One of those missing items: a shed, which Byrd says could have come from anywhere north of Pickwick Lake. Byrd says when residents have found things that aren’t theirs, they’re generally returning that property.

“At this point in time, everybody needs to be a good neighbor,” Byrd said. “If there’s a boat floated up in your yard, it’s not yours to keep. Somebody is looking for it.”

But sometimes finding the owner of that missing property isn’t an easy task.

“Coolers and trash cans and gas cans and propane bottles and things like that, that have no identifying marks,” Byrd said. “I suppose if it floats up in your yard, it’s yours now.”

And he says everyone living on the river is in the cleanup together, and that means that everyone needs to help get things back to their owners.

“Everybody is in the same situation. They’ve lost stuff, and everybody’s trying to figure out where their stuff is and get it back,” Byrd said.

Byrd says if you notice items missing while you’re cleaning up from the flooding, you can also file a report with the Decatur County Sheriff’s Office.