Fay's deluge causes few local problems

Steady rainfall from the remains of Hurricane Fay continued to soak a parched middle Tennessee Tuesday morning and local officials are reporting no problems.

At the Celebration, attendance was down a little bit, according to Chip Walters, public relations director for the annual event.

The actual attendance, in the rain, was 7,983, while the paid attendance was 22,091. The total number of entries on Monday night was 179. But Walters also said that paid attendance was up about 1,000 from last year.

"Monday nights are usually about 10,000 to 11,000," Walters said. He said the wet weather had likely impacted concession sales, but Walters was looking at the overall picture.

"If we have a slow night due to the weather on Monday, we'll have a bigger crowd later in the week," he said.

Walters also said that the Monday night entries performed well and that the grounds crew has the track ready for the horses.

"It's really amazing how it held up" during the steady rain, Walters said.

Mark Clanton, public works director for Shelbyville, said Tuesday morning that the city has measured about two inches of rain since Monday and that there have been no drainage problems.

"A good soaking rain like this keeps it from flooding," Clanton said. "We don't have a problem unless we have these torrential downpours."

Clanton added that his crews were busy on Monday keeping catch basins clear and would be continuing those effort today.

"We keep the system pretty clean, so there shouldn't be any problem," Clanton said.

Duck River Agency director Doug Murphy said that Fay has had a "positive effect" on the watershed, considering that the region is now in the fourth year of a multi-year drought.

Murphy said that the rain from Fay has "helped a whole lot," but he won't know the full impact until rain gauges are checked Wednesday.

According to TVA rain gauges at Normandy Reservoir, 1.20 inches fell at the dam on Monday. On Sunday, 0.20 inches were measured.

The rain has been seen a benefit to the region, with parts of the state slipping back into an extreme drought condition because of a dry summer. The eastern half of Bedford County was considered to be in a "severe" category last week, while the western part is shown as "moderate," according to the U.S. Drought Monitor.

The National Weather Service office in Morristown issued a flood watch for the mountains and the upper Tennessee River Valley and a flash flood watch on the Cumberland Plateau, with rain falling well into the central part of the state and reached into some western counties as well.

Forecaster Mary Black in Morristown said some areas were receiving up to 1/4 inch per hour in heavier downpours.

"How much run off that will end up in the reservoir? It's too early to tell," Murphy said. "But it felt good to get wet!"

The Associated Press contributed to this story.