In the aftermath of the December 10, 2021, Tornado the community of Cayce and Fulton County had need for rebuilding and preparing for the next natural disaster. The Fulton County Agricultural and Natural Resources Agent partnered with Fulton County Emergency Management and the Fulton County Long Term Recovery Committee and other organizations with a series of events to aid the community.

Over a period of several months, the groups hosted an Emergency “Go-Bag” workshop, celebrated the great stride in recovery of the Cayce Community on the 1-year anniversary of the tornado, hosted a tree give-away, and had a meeting in Fulton, Hickman, and Cayce on weather radios. All of these events were extremely well attended and needed by the community.

The tree give-away over one hundred trees were given to the community to help with the replacement of trees that were either damaged or destroyed from the December 10th tornado. These trees were provided free from a Kentucky nursery and delivered by the Christian County Extension Office to every tornado effect county in Kentucky. This event provided trees to over twenty homes to aid in restoring their landscapes.

In the survey that followed the Emergency “Go-Bag” workshop all the participants indicated that learned valuable information on what to include in their bags and the many were planning to make or updating their bag.  In conversations week and months after that meeting some of the participants had expressed their appreciation for that meeting for two reasons; 1 it would allow them to have materials ready for the next event; 2 it gave them a sense of control and ease of mind. As many of these residents just grabbed what they could the night of the tornado. The event had twenty-eight registered individuals.

Like the Emergency “Go-Bag” workshop, the three weather radio meetings were attended by over 200 families as the American Red Cross handed out over 200 weather radios between these three events.  In talking with the representative from the American Red Cross this was one of the first counties they had held one of these events and they only expected a handful of people but were overwhelmed at the turnout for the events.

The 1-year Cayce Comeback Celebration was attended by over one hundred community members, local emergency officials and first responders, State and local leaders and media. During the event, the Long-term Recovery Committee Chair updated the attendees about the progress that had been made and future plans. State and Local leaders gave updates and presented awards. The Fulton County Emergency Management Director gave our plaques honoring the individuals and groups that came to assist the night of the tornado. Local Meteorologist Beau Dodson presented information on the environmental conditions that lead up to the Dec 10th tornado and how that data collected is going will be used in the future for forecasting future weather events and rating tornados.

These events have allowed this community to form a tighter bond with those that live there and have allowed them to form a network with others in the county and local area. Along with those partnerships, the community is rebuilding better than it was before December 10th, 2021, and the citizens of Fulton County will be better prepared for future natural disasters. The groups are looking at other future events to aid the residents of the county.Emergency "Go-Bag" PresentationBeau Dodson Presentation during the Cayce Come-back CelebrationCayce Come-back CelebrationTree Give-away