Good morning, Nashville. Though yesterday started out pretty, last night’s storms wreaked some serious havoc on parts of Tennessee. According to WSMV, “The five counties that now qualify for disaster relief are Claiborne, Cock [sic], Rutherford, Sevier and Union counties.” Farms in all of these counties were significantly damaged by excessive rains and flooding. The folks in Sewanee also saw a pretty nasty tornado and managed to snap pictures for the rest of us. As far as we know, no one was injured.
- HIgher ed passes. Governor Phil’s higher ed overhaul passed unanimously in the state Senate and almost-unanimously in the House yesterday, which includes doling out state funding according to graduation rates rather than raw enrollment numbers.
- Sad Feet. But moving onto more important matters, a 7-foot tall fiberglass penguin statue turned up in Oak Ridge. The penguin is wearing an NYPD uniform and “appears to be holding a radiation detector with one flipper.” If you have any information on this penguin, please contact Oak Ridge law enforcement.
- Bits & pieces. Westbound I-440 is closing again this weekend, from Saturday at 4am to Monday at 6am … Several popular Christian artists are getting together for a Haiti benefit tonight in Franklin … The BBB released a list of the shadiest businesses in Middle Tennessee, thankfully none of which we’ve heard of … The Army Corps of Engineers is worried that the Old Hickory Lake’s water level is too low.
Photo by wjb13.