Saturday is the second anniversary of the April 27th, 2011 storms that left a path of destruction across the area.

In a single day, 248 Alabama residents lost their lives due to those storms including 35 in Dekalb County.

The severe weather event ranked as the second deadliest outbreak ever in the state of Alabama and the 5th deadliest ever recorded in the U.S.

Congressman Mike Rogers made the following remarks remembering the anniversary of the deadly tornadoes.

“The pain of losing loved ones on this tragic day will always remain with us. For the past two years, Alabamians have proved they are resilient. We will always remember the victims of the storms and keep their families in our prayers as we continue to rebuild our communities and our great state.”

In Cherokee County the first storm front actually swept through the area on April 26th – bringing damaging winds, large hail and large tornadoes – with significant amounts of damage being done along Highway 411 North.

As the storms continued damage was reported in the Pollards Bend and Cedar Bluff areas.

When all was said and done, the hardest hit portion of Cherokee County, was along County Road 29 including the areas of Goshen and Forney and in Ball Play along County Road 67 all of which were directly in the path of the storms.

According to the April 27th, 2011 Storm Damage Report – 17 Houses Destroyed; 19 Houses Damaged; 13 Mobile Homes Destroyed; 8 Mobile Homes Damaged; 1 Business Destroyed; total of 4 Chicken Houses Destroyed; 1 Church Destroyed; 4 Churches Damaged; 3 Campers Destroyed – and there were 4 Reported Injuries with No Fatalities in Cherokee County.