School superintendent's youngest son, 9, is sucked into storm drain and carried away after flood, leaving him with 'not much brain activity besides muscle jerks'

A Tennessee boy is fighting for his life after being sucked down a drain while playing in tornado and storm debris. 

Asher Sullivan, 9, was involved in the tragic accident on Wednesday evening in Murfreesboro, as he was 'swept under the neighborhood streets.' 

His father, Rutherford County school superintendent Jimmy Sullivan, said on Facebook that 'CPR was administered for quite some time', which restored his heartbeat but left the boy in critical condition. 

Jimmy said his son is hospitalized at Vanderbilt Children's Hospital, where his 'lungs are severely damaged, and he is not showing much brain activity outside of muscle jerks.'

Asher Sullivan, 9, is fighting for his life after being sucked down a drain while playing in tornado and storm debris on Wednesday evening 

The boy's father Rutherford County school superintendent Jimmy Sullivan (right), said his son's 'lungs are severely damaged, and he is not showing much brain activity outside of muscle jerks' 

The Murfreesboro, Tennessee area saw severe flooding after a storm and tornado ripped through the area, and Asher was playing in debris before the tragedy unfolded 

The horror unfolded as the nine-year-old was playing with other neighborhood kids in the aftermath of a tornado and severe storm that ripped through the Tennessee area earlier this week, killing three. 

While neighbors banded together to clear the damage, Asher's father said that 'somehow, (he) got caught in the storm drain and was swept under the neighborhood streets.' 

Asher 'eventually' emerged in a drainage ditch, he said, alongside another boy who also lives on his street, eighth-grader Madden Moltz. 

While Madden is expected to recover, according to social media post by the local Priest Lake Presbyterian Church, Asher has been left fighting for his life. 

Amid the outpouring of support for the family, locals said family's struggle comes as Asher's older brother, Declan, had been battling leukemia for four years before beating the disease in 2022. 

A local mother also shared patches made by a friend of Asher's to hand to local kids, signaling their support for the boy, reading 'Sullivan Strong.' 

In an email to parents in the school district shared online, an official said that all Rutherford County schools were to be closed on Thursday due to the extent of the damage. 

'You will also hear that our director of school's son was involved in an accident tonight during the storm,' the email continued. 

'He is stable but critical, and is receiving medical treatment tonight. We ask that you please keep this family in your thoughts and prayers.' 

Locals have sent an outpouring of support to Asher's family following the accident, and said their suffering comes as Asher's older brother, Declan, (pictured together with their family) had been battling leukemia for four years before beating the disease in 2022

A local mother also shared patches made by a friend of Asher's to hand to local kids, signaling their support for the boy, reading 'Sullivan Strong' 

Storm damage was seen across Tennessee on Thursday after a weather system ripped through the state earlier in the week 

Tennessee resident John Bernhardt searches for his belongings outside his stormed damaged home Thursday 

The damage that Asher was playing in was caused by a tornado and huge storm that tore through Tennessee, North Carolina and Michigan this week. 

Three people were killed as the twister and severe storm blew through the area, flattening homes and bringing down power to millions. 

One video showed large hailstones battering vehicles and homes in the vicinity of Fire Station 1 in downtown Clarksville, which lies on Tennessee's border with Kentucky. 

Other videos showed trees toppled by heavy winds, and cars wading through inches of water that had collected on roads.

The sheriff in Claiborne County, which lies about an hour north of Knoxville, said one of the victims was a 22-year-old man in a car who was fatally struck by one of the trees.

A second person was killed in the city of Columbia in Maury County, also in Tennessee, and the weather front is expected to bring further damage on Thursday. 

The National Weather Service continued issuing tornado warnings that stretch past midnight in North Carolina, Alabama, Georgia, Missouri and Kentucky, and parts of Arkansas and Mississippi.