Dresden, Tenn.–Dresden took a direct hit from last night’s tornado, with the Dresden Enterprise newspaper office and multiple businesses destroyed. The Dresden Fire Department is still standing but extensively damaged. Among those businesses destroyed are Kountry Korner, Poppie’s Pizza, Donnie Essary’s Shop, Vaughn Brothers Hardware and more.
The Weakley County Courthouse is heavily damaged and extensive damage also is reported to TJ’s convenience store, the Phillips 66 and other businesses.
Sabrina Bates of the Dresden Enteprise posted a photo of what is left of the newspaper office on Facebook and said, “This is what remains of our newspaper office in downtown Dresden. Please be patient with us as we navigate through this tragic situation in the coming days and weeks. Please pray for emergency workers as they help those affected this evening and pray for families impacted and business owners.”
Julie Marie Arnold of Dresden spent two hours driving through Dresden, chronicling the damage and posted the following on her Facebook page:
“Here is a list of what I saw:
-trees blocking or partially blocking most roads(clean up has already begun)
-streets littered with limbs, twigs and anything else that was easily moved from its original location.
-telephone poles down all around town many snapped like twigs
-power lines across almost every road in town
-businesses that are total losses:
-Poppies Pizza
-Kountry Corner
-Dresden Enterprise
-Donnie Essary’s shop
-Vaughn Brothers Hardware
-Dresden Fire Department
-Business with extensive damage
-TJ’s
-old Bryant’s building
-Dresden 4×4
-Dentist office on the square
-Court House ( thought to be a fire but unsure if true)
-Delta Imaging
-Stoker’s possible roof
-Phillips 66
Kountry Korner
Top photo: Dresden Enterprise. Photos by Julie Marie Arnold.