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Towns along Mississippi River brace for major flooding after days of heavy rain

Posted at 7:17 AM, Feb 17, 2020
and last updated 2020-02-17 09:17:03-05

JACKSON, Miss. — Days and days of heavy rain have forced authorities managing dams in Mississippi and Tennessee to release more water, worsening the flooding for people living downstream.

Dramatic video posted by a Tennessee fire department showed the impact: Two houses tumbled down a bluff over the Tennessee River, while many others have been swamped to their rooftops.

Entire neighborhoods have disappeared in muddy water below the Tennessee Valley Authority's Pickwick Reservoir.

In Mississippi, people in and around the capital of Jackson are bracing for more flooding as the rain-swollen Pearl River is expected to crest on Monday.