Gaylord loses appeal over 2010 flood damage

Gaylord Entertainment Company's pursuit of over $250 million in damages it incurred from the 2010 flood is looking bleak now that the U.S. Court of Appeals has ruled in favor of the Middle District of Tennessee's primary ruling.

Gaylord sued the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers over damage to its hotel and convention center and the Grand Ole Opry House after floodwaters topped levees surrounding their property in May 2010. The hotel was evacuated and closed for several months for renovations and waters damaged the famous theater where the Grand Ole Opry is held.

In February 2013, a U.S. district judge dismissed three lawsuits that accused two federal agencies of negligence during the disaster, ruling that the government has legal immunity under a 1928 law.

The suits argued the Corps and the National Weather Service acted negligently and inadequately communicated with each other before and during the storm. The Corps waited too long to release water from Old Hickory dam, while the weather service issued inaccurate river-stage forecasts, the suits contended.

Gaylord filed an appeal hoping to overturn the ruling.