The Nation - News from Feb. 17, 1989
The worst flooding in a decade chased thousands of people from their homes in central Kentucky as the governor declared a state of emergency and National Guardsmen were dispatched into areas swamped by rain-swollen rivers. In Tennessee, an earthen dam burst on the rain-swollen Obion River, sending five feet of water pouring into two towns and forcing 377 residents in Rives and Obion to flee their flooded homes in boats. Kentucky Gov. Wallace Wilkinson ordered about 100 National Guard troops to help with evacuations as the Kentucky River near Frankfort rose nearly 14 feet above flood stage, causing 2,000 families to flee their homes.
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