On March 3, a tornado with wind speeds of 166 to 200 mph hit Putnam County, Tennessee, destroying a significant portion of western Putnam County, a highly populated residential area where several subdivisions are located.

According to Rogers Group Inc. (RGI), the storm system included 10 tornadoes in middle Tennessee and southern Kentucky, which claimed 25 lives, 18 of which were in Putnam County. Several more were critically injured and are still hospitalized.

Starting the next morning, RGI employees in the Cookeville area responded to the call from officials from Putnam County and city of Cookeville for assistance with search and rescue and debris removal to aid in the rescue of the residents of this area.

RGI says its employees all worked extremely hard over many hours to assist as many as possible. They continued their efforts throughout the week with debris removal, road clearing, cooking meals, and providing needed supplies to get the area restored.

The team partnered with a local church, Central City Church, and were able to provide more than 1,200 hot meals during the week to all affected.

RGI says it will continue with assistance in recovery relief as it will be a long road back to recovery for Putnam County. Well done Rogers Group!