Catastrophic overnight flash flooding submerged downtown McCaysville and neighboring Copperhill, Tennessee, on Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026, after torrential mountain rain sent the Toccoa River to a record crest, forced more than 80 water rescues and prompted Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp to declare a state of emergency for four north Georgia counties.

The Toccoa River, known as the Ocoee River after it crosses into Tennessee, reached 18.05 feet at the U.S. Geological Survey gage at Copperhill around 6 a.m. EST Thursday, provisional USGS instantaneous data show. That reading topped the previous record of about 17.75 to 17.8 feet from the Feb. 16, 1990, flood cited by the National Weather Service and local officials. The river rose roughly 16 feet in about 12 hours, with much of the surge packed into a few hours before dawn, FOX 5 Atlanta Storm Team meteorologist Alex Forbes reported.

“I’ve never seen flooding like this in my life,” McCaysville Police Chief Michael Otis Earley said, according to local television reports relayed by The Guardian. Earley said water was 6 to 7 feet deep in parts of the downtown business district and that floodwaters reached above some rooftops.

Fannin County Emergency Management Agency spokesperson Robert Poole said Thursday that 13 swift-water rescue teams using nine boats carried out overnight rescues as washed-out roads, floating vehicles and propane tanks complicated operations. Officials initially reported 57 people rescued. Mutual aid partners later pushed the Fannin County total above 80, FOX 5 Atlanta and Atlanta News First reported. U.S. Army Rangers from Camp Frank D. Merrill assisted with helicopter searches.

 

No deaths were confirmed Thursday. Fannin County Fire Rescue said there was no loss of life. Earley said no major injuries had been reported, though several people were hospitalized for hypothermia or shock and a firefighter was evaluated for leg pain after a propane-related incident. Crews also fought multiple structure fires, Poole said, while floating propane tanks lodged under bridges and burned or exploded near downtown, FOX 5 Atlanta reported.

The National Weather Service office in Peachtree City said training thunderstorms ahead of a slow-moving cold front repeatedly soaked the same southern Appalachian corridor Wednesday night into Thursday morning. Weather.com, citing NWS analysis, said 5 to 11 inches of rain fell over an area roughly 20 miles long by 10 miles wide across portions of Fannin and Gilmer counties, with rainfall rates of 2 to 3 inches per hour at times.

WLOS, citing NWS Peachtree City storm reports, said a station northwest of Blue Ridge recorded 11.19 inches, with that total falling in less than six hours in one report. Other reported totals included 9.08 inches near Higdon, 8.40 inches south of Mineral Bluff and 7.57 inches north of Mineral Bluff. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported 8 to 11 inches in the hardest-hit areas.

Mountain terrain magnified the hazard. Much of the rain fell on surrounding ridges rather than directly on downtown McCaysville, Forbes said. Runoff then concentrated in the narrow valley shared by McCaysville and Copperhill, spreading hundreds of yards beyond the normal channel and overtopping bridges. The National Weather Service issued a rare flash flood emergency, Weather.com and local outlets reported.

USGS provisional readings at Copperhill show the river climbing from about 7 feet near midnight EST to more than 14 feet — major flood stage — by 3:30 a.m., then to 16 feet around 4:30 a.m. and the 18.05-foot peak at 6 a.m. NWS flood-impact guidance describes catastrophic flooding at 16 feet, with numerous homes, businesses and roads flooded and bridges connecting Copperhill and McCaysville overtopped, CBS News Atlanta reported.

By midday Thursday, waters were receding and revealing thick mud, silt-coated streets and debris piled against bridges. Large logs estimated at 3 1/2 to 4 feet in diameter slammed into bridge structures, Forbes reported. Street sweepers and dumpsters were already at work by Thursday afternoon.

The flood struck communities still recovering from significant flash flooding in August 2026 that damaged homes, businesses, the police department and the post office. Earley said some public buildings had reopened only about a week earlier.

“This community means a lot to me,” Earley said Friday, according to FOX 5 Atlanta. “And we experienced a flash flood three months ago, and we just got back on our feet and some of our buildings were starting to open back up. And people have been actively cleaning up for the past three months. And then we get hit again. Got a long road ahead of us.”

Business owners described shelves toppled and merchandise ruined. Kim Bowers of Nature’s Collectibles General Store had sandbagged her reopened shop after the August flood only to find devastation again Thursday, the AJC reported. Across the state line, Copperhill residents Tommy and Sandra Edwards said about 6 feet of water entered their Fightingtown Creek home after they woke around 2 a.m., FOX 5 Atlanta reported.

Kemp declared a state of emergency for Fannin, Gilmer, Murray and Union counties. The order makes state resources available, activates coordination through the Georgia Emergency Management and Homeland Security Agency and prohibits price gouging for necessities such as water and fuel, WSB-TV reported. The declaration runs through 11:59 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 12, and can be renewed.

“As emergency personnel continue to respond, this will ensure all necessary resources are available to assist these communities impacted by the flooding,” Kemp said.

GEMA is leading a multi-agency response that includes the Georgia Department of Public Safety, the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, aircraft and boats, local agencies and Tennessee first responders, Kemp said. Georgia DNR game wardens assisted in Fannin and Murray counties. McCaysville also declared a local state of emergency and closed city access points — including River Road, Mobile Road, Blue Ridge Drive and Highway 68 from Tennessee — to unauthorized personnel.

A mandatory curfew took effect Thursday night from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. until further notice for the downtown business district and residential properties along East Tennessee Avenue, West Tennessee Avenue and Toccoa Avenue, McCaysville police said.

The city’s water treatment plant shut down completely, leaving a system that serves nearly 4,000 customers — including a hospital and school — unable to produce water, Earley said. A boil-water advisory remains in effect until further notice. Officials said restoration could be lengthy with no firm timeline. On Friday, Nov. 6, the city distributed drinking water from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the building behind McCaysville City Hall.

Power and cellphone communications were down in parts of the city Thursday morning. A temporary flight restriction limited drones and manned aircraft over the area to protect rescue aviation. Fannin County schools and the Fannin County Courthouse were closed Thursday and Friday. An emergency shelter operated at the Fannin County Recreation Center at 370 Tom Boyd Road in Blue Ridge, with Red Cross assistance.

“Please do not let the rain stopping give you a false sense of security,” Fannin County emergency officials said, urging people to avoid floodwaters and call 911 rather than drive or walk through them.

By Friday morning, floodwaters had largely receded from downtown McCaysville, but Atlanta News First reported debris strewn across the business district and said repairs could take months to years. Officials had not released a comprehensive damage tally. Atlanta News First reported the National Weather Service characterized the rainfall as a 1-in-1,000-year event for the affected footprint.

Drier, cooler weather was forecast to aid cleanup through the weekend, FOX 5 Atlanta reported. For a tourism-dependent corridor known for the Blue Ridge Scenic Railway and river recreation, the latest flood arrives in a key visitor season and compounds losses from August. Through Nov. 12, state agencies will continue supporting local governments under Kemp’s emergency order while McCaysville residents face boil-water rules, overnight curfew zones and another long recovery.