A Jury Cleared the Railroad in the Flood That Killed 20 People in Waverly

TENNESSEE

MEMPHIS, Tenn. - A federal jury on Wednesday, August 12, 2026 unanimously found CSX Transportation not responsible for the August 2021 flood that killed 20 people in Waverly, Tennessee, WSMV and other Nashville outlets reported. The verdict came after a five-day trial.

The families' case turned on the railroad's infrastructure. Plaintiffs alleged CSX failed to clear debris from its culvert and knew that flooding behind its berm posed severe risks to the town below. They sought $450 million in damages. That figure was the demand in the complaint, what the plaintiffs asked for, not an amount any court awarded.

The jury answered both liability questions in the railroad's favor, finding CSX did not fail to warn of unsafe conditions and did not interfere with natural surface water drainage, according to WSMV. CSX said it "acted responsibly, safely, and in full compliance with applicable standards."

The August 21, 2021 flood remains one of the deadliest in Tennessee history: a record rainfall sent a wall of water through Waverly, a Humphreys County town of roughly 4,000, killing 20 people and destroying hundreds of homes. Five years of litigation over whether private infrastructure worsened the disaster ended with a complete defense verdict.

Whether the families will appeal was not stated in the initial coverage.

Why It Matters for Memphis

This is a statewide accountability story on its own terms, and it carries a lesson any flood-prone river city can read: when disaster liability goes to a jury, the question is not whether the outcome was catastrophic but whether a specific actor's specific duty was breached. Twenty deaths produced no finding of fault against the railroad whose berm and culvert sat above the town.

The Oversight Question

The jury has answered the private-liability question. The public-infrastructure one remains: five years on, what have state and federal agencies actually built or changed in Waverly's flood defenses, and who is accountable for the warning systems that existed on August 21, 2021?

Your city. Your money. Your receipts.