SPENCER, Tenn. (WKRN) — Hikers and campers found themselves trapped at Fall Creek Falls State Park during Monday’s severe weather.
On Tuesday, the park remained closed with power out and crews working to clean up after a frightening day of severe weather.
“Very scary, but it’s just like my bucket list is full,” laughed Lee Wagner.
With that in mind, Wagner and his wife from Jamestown opted to ride out the storm.
“It started pouring. The wind started howling and we said, ‘Oh boy.’ We get back here and the lights go out, power’s gone and the winds are picking up, and the next thing you know right to the side of us here, the first tree goes down.”
Fallen trees trapped dozens of park visitors for several hours.
“Oh yeah. Cars backed up (on) both sides. I mean, families on each side of the lumber that’s laying across the road,” Wagner explained while being interrupted as trees continued falling nearby. “That’s what it sounds like, except the wind is howling and lightning is crashing and stuff like that, but yeah it was quite an event.”
The couple and campground hosts said they hunkered down and prayed that no one was injured.
“We had a report of a tree hit a family; a mother and daughter were in a slide out on a trailer. Tree hit the trailer, he had to fish his wife and kid out of the slide that got thrown off the trailer. There were no injuries, but there’s going to be some serious trauma there for quite awhile,” Wagner said.
Steve Caldwell and his family from Lebanon were among many that tried to make their way out as the winds picked up. Caldwell said it was difficult to see as their truck was pelted by branches, witnessing a couple narrowly missing a 40-foot tree as it fell on the bed of their truck.
Caldwell praised the hard work of rangers and volunteers, saying it took about four hours to get out of the park.
On Tuesday, Wagner described the campground as a ghost town as the sound of chainsaws echoed throughout.
“They showed up today, bucket trucks, bobcats, and chainsaws,” he said.
Everyone is grateful that no one was injured as crews continued working to get the park back open.
“You have to be able to survive off your own water supply, your own sewer, your own electricity until this stuff returns. They are advising us now that it could be seven to 10 days before the electricity is back on, so we are in it for a while,” laughed Wagner.
The park’s Facebook page said all individuals with reservations through Thursday, Aug. 10 will be contacted via email.