FRANKLIN, Tenn. (AP) - It wasn’t until a knock at the door that Jennifer Goldstein knew anything about the water.
Goldstein and her toddler had huddled down for the rainy day, with her 2-year-old taking a nap inside the now-demolished home on Ewingville Drive near downtown Franklin. When she opened the door to a neighbor, the water was inching toward her front steps.
It wasn’t only Nashville that found itself underwater the first week of May in 2010, when historic rain caused flooding that overtook the Middle Tennessee region.
“We were in the home maybe 30 to 45 minutes after we knew the water was there,” she said, thinking back about 10 years ago. “When we left the water was up to my knees. By the time we knew, the water was already at our door.”
Prior to leaving, Goldstein tried to move her company’s video production equipment to a higher plane. She grabbed her pets. The next day, a family member canoed to her house to discover that eight feet of water had overtaken the brick structure.
“There was nothing salvageable,” she said. “It was gone. The volunteers were our saving grace, but we were left with nothing except the option to start back over.”
‘BY FAR THE HIGHEST’
By the time the Army Corps of Engineers decided to open the floodgates in Nashville, Franklin and parts of Williamson County were already underwater.
The Harpeth River surged and so did its tributaries along the way. In Franklin, 17.87 inches of rain fell over May 1 and 2, exceeding the NOAA Atlas 14 1,000-year storm event by more than five inches, according to data from the National Weather Service.
“The rain fell on Franklin and west down to Leiper’s Fork. If it had fallen another 25 miles or so south and east, it would have been worse because the water would have fallen upstream,” National Weather Service hydrologist James Larosa said. “But we have a gauge there at the Pinkerton Park, and it was by far the highest we had ever seen. But to show how bad it could have been you can look at Kingston Springs. The water got so high it washed the gauge away. It was the highest by several feet in nearly 90 years of data.”
Larosa said Franklin got a “little bit lucky” that it fell right in the city, stopping just short of flooding the downtown corridor completely. The rains created more of a flash flood, but of a major river system instead of creeks.
He said the modeling 10 years ago was limited to domain areas, but the moisture that accumulated during the May 2010 rains primarily outside of the domain area.
“The modeling at that time didn’t have a great handle on the moisture as it originated in the tropics which is outside of the area that the model forecasts for,” LaRosa said.
In the neighborhoods hit, current Mayor Ken Moore passed out pimento cheese sandwiches with his wife, Linda. The two joined the cleanup effort, along with most Franklin residents.
“What I learned is that Franklin is an amazing, giving place,” Moore said. “Not only were our city folks out working as the water receded, but our residents were out there just because they wanted to help.”
‘CHILL BUMPS AND TEARS’
Onion rings floated in the water when David Watson entered his Sonic Drive-In on Hillsboro Boulevard.
Using fishing waders, he slogged through the four feet of water to reach the breaker. The electricity was still on in the building, and the Franklin Police Department was asking his staff to leave immediately with the water rising quickly. Looking back, Watson noted the danger surrounding the task, but saving his Sonic was only second nature.
“I get everything from chill bumps to tears when I think about it now,” he said. “That place was my entire life. It’s emotional as I look back at the photos. It was a rough time. I had a young family, and I worried.”
Watson rebuilt the Sonic in the 1980s after it had been a drive-up liquor store. It was the first of 30 Sonics he would come to own. In high school, he worked at his local Sonic.
“The water came so fast we just had to leave everything as it was,” he said. “Luckily the city of Franklin was cooperative, and they helped me. We left the three walls up, and we were grandfathered with the regulations so we could rebuild it. And after 10 long months, it was a brand new store. That was a blessing, too.”
The May 2010 flood left an impression on Watson deep enough that every time it rains now he feels fear. Several weather events since 2010 have flooded Bicentennial Park across the road, but none have ever reached his burger and fry joint again.
“Back then, the rains were coming up, and coming up so fast,” he said. “Now when it starts to rain heavily, I will just sit at that Sonic and go watch to see if the water comes up.”
MOVING FORWARD
In the 10 years since the flood came, nearly everything in Goldstein’s life has changed.
She now owns a house off of West Main Street and has a second child. She ran a video production company for 10 years, but recently retired from that gig.
It took a few years to get out of the financial hole the flood brought into her life. Occasionally, she tries to find objects in her home but has to remind herself she lost them a decade ago.
“I think the biggest thing I learned from it was that when you need people, they come out,” she said. “It was pretty amazing to see the neighbors and the volunteers. There were so many people that came. Everyone just kept asking us what they could do. People donated diapers and baby food and toys. We stocked up with stuff really quickly. When you do need it, people step up and provide it to you.”
It’s rare that Goldstein goes back to the site of her former house. The city made her tear it down and purchased the lot from her. Now in her old neighborhood, the city is partnering with the federal government to raze houses out of the floodplain. For three years, she paid a mortgage on a house she no longer lived in.
“I used to be such a worrier, and that has made me realize you have to let go and let things happen as they will,” she said. “Let help in. I was always a Type A personality, and it let me relax. If people are there to help, let them do that and embrace it. I learned that a part of starting over led me to one question: What should I do next?”
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