On the night of Dec. 10, 2021, Dresden, the county seat of Weakley County, took a direct hit from EF-3 tornado. The storm — part of a highly destructive and deadly storm system that tracked hundreds of miles across multiple states — wiped out a chunk of the city’s historic downtown, and injured eight people. City hall and the fire department were damaged, along with about 200 homes and 21 businesses. Two churches were destroyed.
Cleanup from the devastating storm continued in February when UT Martin sent over 100 volunteers from various student and alumni groups to help, and volunteers are still needed to this day. If you’re interested in helping, please visit weakleycountytn.gov/tornadoresources for more information.