KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Crews responded to reports of flooding and downed power lines across Knox County on Tuesday. Severe Thunderstorm Warnings were issued across East Tennessee on Tuesday afternoon. Heavy rain was a big factor in these storms, and it led to flash flooding in parts of Knoxville.
People should use extreme caution on the roads and make sure never to drive through floodwaters.
The Tennessee Department of Transportation Smartway map showed roads were jammed up across most of Knoxville. Pooling water could be seen on several ramps on I-40 and I-640, and at least two cars had stalled in floodwaters at the I-275 ramp to I-640 and the I-275 ramp at Heiskell Avenue.
The Knoxville Fire Department said it also had to pull a person out of a car that drove into floodwaters on Fifth Avenue. They said the person was not hurt.
KPD is asking people not to drive on flooded roads and to consider staying off the roads until flash flooding recedes.
People shared video of a portion of Papermill Drive at the Weisgarber Road intersection completely underwater in West Knoxville.
Several others shared photos of trees and downed power lines in other parts of Knox County, including the Karns area.
The Knoxville Police Department urged people not to drive on flooded roads. People should report flooded roads to KPD at 865-215-4010.
KUB reported thousands of people temporarily lost power after storms tore through the area.
At one point, the city of Alcoa and Alcoa Electric reported more than 10,000 customers without people without power after two substations went down.
"We have all crews and engineers currently triaging the substation outages and working to bring those back online as quickly as possible. Alcoa Electric asks for your patience as we work to get all power restored. If you are experiencing an outage, please call (865) 380-4890," the city said.
The Maryville Police Department also said power lines fell on East Lamar Alexander Parkway, between Buchanan Road and John Helton Road. That road was closed at around 5:10 p.m.
This story is developing and will be updated.