Two failing dams in North Carolina force urgent evacuations after days of heavy rain

At least two major dams in North Carolina were at risk or in the process of failing on Friday,  forcing evacuations after Hurricane Helene inundated the region.The Tennessee Emergency Management Agency shared a warning from Cocke County Mayor Rob Mathis on Friday afternoon, saying that the Waterville Dam — also known as the Walters Dam — had “suffered a catastrophic failure.” Mathis later declared a state of emergency for the county, according to a Facebook post. The agency called for an evacuation of the downstream community of Newport, Tennessee, a town of about 7,000 residents across the state border.A spokeswoman for Duke Energy, which owns and operates the 208-foot hydroelectric Walters Dam, could not immediately confirm that the dam had failed. Kristin Coulter, Tennessee Emergency Management Agency’s communications director, said she could not confirm the dam had failed, either. Mathis could not immediately be reached. “At this time we are working with our…