Over 50 People Trapped on Tennessee Hospital Roof by Hurricane Helene Floodwaters Rescued

Mar. 15, 2025

Unicoi County Hospital.Photo:Virginia State Police/Facebook

Virginia State Police/Facebook

Over 50 people who were left stranded on the roof of a Tennessee hospital due to flooding fromHurricane Helenehave been rescued, police said.

After the Category 4 hurricane tore through several U.S. states on the night of Thursday, Sept. 26, many communities were left with severe flooding — including Unicoi County, Tenn. Patients and hospital staff at Unicoi County Hospital were forced to evacuate to the roof when the flooding began.

WCYB reported earlier on Friday that all roads with access to the hospital were “impassable” due to the flooding. Police cruisers and ambulances had been lost in the deep waters.

An aerial view of Unicoi County Hospital in Tennessee.Virginia State Police/Facebook

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The outlet also reported that a SWAT team happened to be training at the hospital at the time, and the team members were able to save medications.

Ballad Health wrote in a statement earlier on Friday that boats had been deployed to rescue the patients and staff, but the conditions quickly became too rough, per WJHL.

“Unfortunately, the water around the hospital, which had also begun intruding inside the hospital, became extremely dangerous and impassable and prevented the boats from safely being able to evacuate the hospital,” Ballad stated in the release. “Due to high winds, no helicopters could safely fly in an effort to help evacuate the hospital.”

Law enforcement and other government agencies began working together to start rescue operations. By the early afternoon, Virginia State Police had reported that its aviation units had flown from Abingdon, Va. to Erwin to assist in the rescue, along with staff from Ballad Health and the Tennessee National Guard.

At around 4:40 p.m. local time, Virginia State Police announced that its team had successfully evacuated 54 people from the hospital. According toWJHL, Ballad Health said everyone had been successfully evacuated from the hospital, and patients in need of transferred medical care were taken to the Johnson City Medical Center about 20 miles away.

“There’s no way the building’s gonna survive this,” he said, per WJHL. “We’ll take a look at it once the water goes down, but it’s a shame; it’s a brand-new hospital. But you know what? It’s just a building. We can figure that out. I’m just thankful to God and everybody that our people are safe.”

source: people.com