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I think I would get close.   

Maybe a tenth or two degrees Celsius.  Maybe. 

I think most of the damage is from rivers and creeks getting way out of their banks and eroding highways and causing mudslides.  And of course all the water that falls on nearby mountains is channeled down below through said creeks which couldn't hold it.  I'm guessing in spots the rainfall was much more than a foot.

The worst floods seem to be in mountainous areas, I think.  For one thing, you get unusual amounts of water cascading rapidly "downhill" with enhanced erosion.  Still(er) water is less of a problem in terms of washing out areas of concern.

And towns get built in valleys (usually) which means having a river nearby often as not, I can't think of a mountain town in the east in a valley without a river.  Highlands doesn't, but it's at elevation, not in a valley.  Franklin, NC has two rivers joining to make a third.

At least the two dams of concern have held, so far.  I know Badge doesn't like dams, but I THINK the destruction would have been much worse without TVA dams in that area.  That was a primary reason for the TVA.

The Unified Development of the Tennessee River plan stressed TVA was to provide flood control, navigation and electricity for the region. TVA's dams are tangible evidence of its primary mission: improving life in the Tennessee Valley.

A lot of TVA dams are on unnavigable rivers.  Electricity was a major goal, for sure, Fontana Dam was built to power aluminum production in Alcoa during the war as I understand it.  The floods preTVA were pretty bad.  Of course, that would encourage folks to build higher up instead of in a "flood plain".  

My cousin lives near Murphy, NC, she says they are undamaged but were without power for a while.  This is in far western NC, so likely avoided the worst of it.  I spent a lot of time in many of these towns over the years, the photos I see are incredible.  I'm looking for a real charity somewhere, not sure about some of these.  We have a brief trip sculeduled into the north GA mountains midOctober, word is where we're headed is fine.

Another one? Might be, but we're hopeful it fizzles.



Florida on long-range alert for upcoming Gulf tropical threat (accuweather.com)