'There won't be another night': Family, community gains closure with last missing flood victim's remains found

Washington County officials say they are proud to be able to provide closure to Nancy Tucker's family after identifying human remains found during debris cleanup efforts on Jackson Island to be hers during a press conference Tuesday. The remains were found Saturday in an area previously identified by K9s as a potential location for Tucker, the last remaining flood victim. Medical examiners determined Tucker's identity Monday evening using dental records. The discovery Tucker's remains comes days before the two year anniversary of Hurricane Helene, one of the region's largest catastrophes in history. In Washington County, the disaster caused the Nolichuckey River to flood, destroying houses, farms and creating immense damage still visible today. Across the region, Hurricane Helene took more than 200 lives. "One of the important parts of doing a thorough recovery is to recover enough of the remains so that those medical records and dental records and things can be used to make a positive identification," said local emergency management agency chief Dan Wheeley adding it is "pretty spectacular" the medical examiners were able to make an identification as quickly as they did. Washington County and Johnson City Emergency Management Agency, Emergency Medical Services, Mayor Joe Grandy and Director of Tennessee Emergency Management Agency were among the county officials and agencies present at the press conference. Officials emphasized the importance of finding Tucker being the main goal of the debris cleanup on Jackson Island. "Over 700 days [have] passed," said James Matthews, WCJCEMA public affairs and operations officer. "That means that [the] family has waited for that time. Every night they went to bed they didn't know where a loved one was. There won't be another night." Matthews said search and rescue efforts have been ongoing for Tucker and never stopped. He explained large piles of debris and "unstable conditions" made searching the more than 80-acre spread of land challenging. "This is debris like many have never seen before," said Matthews, adding searches didn't stop at the island. Members of Tucker's family were not present at the conference, but Matthews said they are appreciative of the efforts made by community members and local first responders to bring the closure they long awaited for. Jackson Island is the last place along the Nolichuckey River to be cleaned up since the hurricane. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers awarded a $33.7 million contract to DRC Emergency Services for the cleanup of the more than 60 acres of federal land located within the Cherokee National Forest. Cleanup efforts began on Sept. 9 and are still on schedule to be completed by March 23, 2027. Tucker was last seen on Sept. 27, 2024, the day Hurricane Helene hit East Tennessee, western North Carolina and Southwest Virginia. Nancy, along with her husband, Jimmy, lived close to Jackson Bridge in southwest Washington County. Jimmy's body was found just days later. A table of flowers sat at the front of the room to represent Tucker's "green thumb," Matthews said. "Ms. Tucker was a great gardener, I'd heard from her family," he said. "So we wanted to make sure that we had flowers out in her honor." While Tucker was the last missing flood victim in Washington County, there are still missing people from North Carolina. Wheeley said only one missing person is within the watershed that feeds into the Nolichuckey River and there is no indication that somebody from North Carolina made it to Washington County. Wheeley added search and rescue teams will no longer be onsite during cleanup efforts, but they will be on standby if needed. This is a developing story, and more information will be released as it is obtained.