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The 7-month-old twins who died in catastrophic flooding in Tennessee over the weekend were “washed away” with all of their parents’ belongings, a relative said on Monday.
The babies, Rileigh and Ryan, were their family’s “precious angels”, relative Jeanna Hall said in a statement.
Two older siblings survived, Hall said.
The children’s father, Matthew Rigney, told WTVF-TV of Nashville he woke up to a sudden surge of water that flooded the area on Saturday after record-breaking rainfall. The surge erupted through the door of his family’s apartment.
The mother of the children, Daniella Hall, escaped through a window to ask for help as water flooded their home, Rigney told the station. The family’s 5-year-old was hanging around Rigney’s neck, a 19-month-old was on his hip and the twins were in his arms, he said.
“The water, when it hit us, just dragged us under a bed, we’re all trapped under a bed,” Rigney told the station, adding, “I wish I could have done something.”
The bodies of the twins were found in the apartment, the station reported. They were among 22 people who, according to Humphreys County authorities, died in the flooding.
Lucy Connor, 7, is also deceased, her cousin Samantha told NBC News. She said her father tried to save the girl but only managed to save her aunt – who was nailed to the ceiling in her apartment – by tying a rope around them and getting them up in her room. boat.
Samantha recalled that Lucy was funny and smart and that she loved to sing and dance.
“She loved her mother more than anything,” she said.
In Waverly, the small town where most of the deaths have occurred, Public Safety Chief Grant Gillespie told reporters on Monday that the flooding – which occurred after 17 inches of rain fell in less than 24 hours – had a “huge impact” on “this small community. “
“The city will bear these scars for many decades,” he said.
Gillespie said fewer than 10 people were still missing, up from more than 40 on Sunday.
Caitlin Fichtel contributed.
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