Freeze Warning issued April 24 at 10:02PM EDT until April 25 at 9:00AM EDT by NWS Wilmington OH (details ...)

* WHAT...Sub-freezing temperatures as low as 31 expected.
* WHERE...Hardin, Mercer, Auglaize, Shelby, Logan, Union, Delaware, Champaign and Licking Counties.
* WHEN...From midnight tonight to 9 AM EDT Thursday.
* IMPACTS...Frost and freeze conditions will kill crops, other sensitive vegetation and possibly damage unprotected outdoor plumbing.

Tuesday, February 11th

Hill collapses, roads flooded, dam eroded by Southern rains

By JAY REEVES Associated Press

In this photo provided by the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency, area officials monitor a potential dam/levee failure in the Springridge Place subdivision in Yazoo County, Miss., Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2020. A Tennessee hillside collapsed, roads were flooded and rivers were rising across the Southeast on Tuesday after a day of heavy rains that once again threatened a Mississippi lake where a dam previously was in danger of failing. (David Battaly/Mississippi Emergency Management Agency via AP)

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) - A Tennessee hillside collapsed, roads were flooded and rivers were rising across the Southeast on Tuesday after a day of heavy rains that once again threatened a Mississippi lake where a dam previously was in danger of failing.

The National Weather Service said minor to moderate flooding was expected from central Mississippi to north Georgia following downpours. The Tennessee River was predicted to crest about 7 feet (2.1 meters) above flood level at Perryville, Tennessee, on Sunday.

Near Great Smoky Mountains National Park in eastern Tennessee, tons of rock and soil slid off a 70-foot (21-meter) hillside and blocked the northbound side of a U.S. 441 spur linking the tourist towns of Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge, the National Park Service said.

At least 45 dump truck loads will be required to clear the road, officials estimated, but no injuires were reported.

Multiple roads were covered with water or washed out because of rainfall that exceeded 5 inches (7.6 centimeters) in spots across central Alabama, and forecasters said totals could reach 6 inches (15.2 centimeters) by nightfall.

Schools opened late or closed in parts of Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana because of flash flooding. A flood watch stretched from eastern Texas to Mississippi, and parts of Alabama were under flood warnings.

North of Birmingham in Cullman, the sheriff's office said Deputy Adam Clark and his police dog were badly injured in a wreck during heavy rains overnight. The cause of the crash was under investigation.

In this photo provided by the National Park Service, Great Smoky Mountains National Park and Federal Highways Administration staff clear mud and rock from the Spur connecting the Tennessee tourist towns of Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge, near the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2020. (National Park Service via AP)

Excessive rains flood the Oktibbeha County Lake campground in Starkville, Miss., Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2020. In eastern Mississippi, officials in Starkville said the water at Oktibbeha County Lake had once again reached a critical level just weeks after heavy rains caused a mudslide that put the earthen dam in danger of failing. (Ryan Phillips/The Starkville Daily News via AP)

In this aerial photo provided by the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency, area officials monitor a potential dam/levee failure in the Springridge Place subdivision in Yazoo County, Miss., Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2020. A Tennessee hillside collapsed, roads were flooded and rivers were rising across the Southeast on Tuesday after a day of heavy rains that once again threatened a Mississippi lake where a dam previously was in danger of failing. (David Battaly/Mississippi Emergency Management Agency via AP)

This aerial drone photo provided by the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency shows a potential dam/levee failure in the Springridge Place subdivision in Yazoo County, Miss., Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2020. A Tennessee hillside collapsed, roads were flooded and rivers were rising across the Southeast on Tuesday after a day of heavy rains that once again threatened a Mississippi lake where a dam previously was in danger of failing. (David Battaly/Mississippi Emergency Management Agency via AP)

In eastern Mississippi, officials in Starkville said the water at Oktibbeha County Lake had once again reached a critical level just weeks after heavy rains caused a mudslide that put the earthen dam in danger of failing.

Pumps had been used to lower the lake level by about 8 feet (2.4 meters) since mid-January, but officials said the water had risen to an even higher than before because of recent storms.

"It has risen over 8.5 feet from our low elevation during pumping and continues to rise," said a statement by Kristen Campanella, emergency management director in Oktibbeha County.

Officials also were monitoring the site of a potential dam failure in Yazoo County, where the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency said a 40-acre (16-hectare) lake in a subdivision was leaking around a culvert and washing away dirt, threatening four homes and a church. Five homes were evacuated after a levee breach in Leake.

Elsewhere in Mississippi, 25 homes had been damaged and four people were hurt in wrecks caused by vehicles hydroplaning on wet roads, according to the state. The damage was worst in Yazoo, where a dozen people were displaced from homes.

In addition, the National Weather Service confirmed Tuesday that an EF-1 tornado touched down Monday about 2.5 miles (4 kilometers) northwest of Piave, Mississippi, in Greene County. The twister caused minor roof damage and uprooted several trees, the weather agency said.

The Tennessee Valley region has received 550% of its normal rainfall during the past seven days, James Everett, senior manager of the Tennessee Valley Authority's River Forecast Center, said in a briefing. Rainfall averaged around 6 inches (15 centimeters) across the valley, but some places got as much as 9 inches (23 centimeters).

"We're getting a brief break in rainfall today, but we expect it to pick up tomorrow through Thursday," Everett said.

To manage all of the water, the TVA will continue storing water in large mountain reservoirs to help reduce flooding downstream, Everett said. The agency plans to adjust its strategy for water storage and flows depending on how much more water falls on the already saturated ground, he said.

Isolated tornadoes and winds in excess of 60 mph (97 kph) are possible in some areas of the South after nightfall Wednesday, the National Weather Service said.

With the weather system moving eastward, West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice instructed emergency officials to be ready for flooding in addition to high water that already had led to school closures in the state.

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Associated Press reporter Jeff Martin in Atlanta contributed to this report.

A vehicle sprays water as rain falls in downtown Jackson, Miss., Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2020, making for cascades of splashed water as traffic drives through. The National Weather Service says minor to moderate flooding is expected from central Mississippi to north Georgia following downpours. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)

Vehicles turn around on a road blocked by floodwaters in Helena, Ala., on Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2020. The National Weather Service said flooding was expected from central Mississippi to north Georgia following downpours, and severe storms could follow the rain. (AP Photo/Jay Reeves)

This photo provided by WCBI-TV shows Crews at work to replace drainage pipes at the Oktibbeha County Lake dam in Starkville, Miss.,, as heavy rains cause water levels to rise on Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2020. Fire Coordinator Kirk Rosenhan told WCBI-TV that this pipe wasn't pumping enough water. Oktibbeha County Lake has once again reached a critical level just weeks after heavy rains caused a mudslide that put the earthen dam in danger of failing. (Cash Matlock/WCBI-TV via AP)

In this Monday, Feb. 10, 2020, photo, a student at the University of Alabama makes her way through the downpour in Tuscaloosa, Ala. Roads are flooding and rivers are rising across the Deep South after a day of heavy rains. The National Weather Service says minor to moderate flooding is expected from central Mississippi to north Georgia following downpours. (Gary Cosby Jr./The Tuscaloosa News via AP)

A road crew from Tuscaloosa County repairs a washed out section of New Orleans Drive in the Coker community which is in Tuscaloosa County west of the city of Tuscaloosa, Ala., Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2020. Heavy rains fell Monday leaving the Tuscaloosa area with high water and washed out roads. The National Weather Service says minor to moderate flooding is expected from central Mississippi to north Georgia following downpours. (Gary Cosby Jr./The Tuscaloosa News via AP)

Mississippi Department of Transportation personnel is seen on scene where part of the roadway of Highway 80 has washed away just near Mount Alban Road in Vicksburg, Miss., Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2020. (Courtland Wells/The Vicksburg Post via AP)

Crews work to replace drainage pipes at the Oktibbeha County Lake dam in Starkville, Miss., as heavy rains cause water levels to rise, Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2020. In eastern Mississippi, officials in Starkville said the water at Oktibbeha County Lake had once again reached a critical level just weeks after heavy rains caused a mudslide that put the earthen dam in danger of failing. (Ryan Phillips/The Starkville Daily News via AP)