Severe storms came crashing into Cherokee County shortly before 7:00pm Easter Sunday – finally taking their leave just after 2:00 Monday morning, leaving behind a countywide trail of damaged structures, downed trees and power lines, and flooded roadways.     

Cherokee County was under a tornado warning – not once, but twice – before the night was over.

The first wave of storms came through during the early evening hours – with the first of the warnings being issued for Cherokee, Etowah and DeKalb counties – that second wave made its way across the area shortly after 10:00pm coming out of DeKalb into Cherokee County – with a second warning being issued for those two counties.

At around 11:00pm, a “water rescue” had to be performed on County Road 81, where seven people had to be helped from their home due to rapidly rising flood waters.  EMA personnel and Rescue Squad members helped everyone safely exit the home.  We also have reports of Providence Baptist Church in the Pollard’s Bend community receiving significant damage to the roof of the building.

WEIS Radio News spoke with both the DeKalb County Sheriff’s Office and Ft Payne Police at around 6:00am Monday, and we were informed that at that time the area of Glen Boulevard to Airport Road where the entrance to DeKalb Medical Center is located is impassable along with a number of other roads both in the city and throughout the county.  

County Road 89 at Desoto State Park / Courtesy of DeKalb County Sheriff’s Office

Here at WEIS Radio we measured 3.12 inches of rain over the past 24 hours.

We urge all motorists to exercise caution and watch for any trees and/or large limbs down across the roadways, especially on lesser traveled back roads also watch for water standing in the roadways