Community, church members gather 4 years after fatal Beauregard tornado

BEAUREGARD, Ala. (WTVM) - Friday marked four years since a violent tornado ripped through East Alabama and devastated the community of Beauregard. 23 people died as a result of the storm.

Members of Providence Baptist Church opened the doors to neighbors on Friday night to remember the lives lost that tragic day.

In the aftermath, Lisa Pierce, Director of the Alabama Rural Ministry was there for help homeowners rebuild.

“We coordinated the disaster case management process for 100′s of families that were affected plus coordinated volunteer groups that went out and did repairs,” said Pierce. “The good news is we got many of the homes finished in that first two years. But we had a few that took a little bit more time.”

Pastor Rusty Sowell is a member of the Beauregard Fire Department board of trustees. He says the memories of that day still linger, especially during stormy weather.

“Truly a lot of emotion today… I think about the people and the families of the victims, and a lot of people were injured physically. We remember the people who came to help us when we couldn’t help ourselves,” said Sowell.

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