Caldwell County church ready to rebuild after tornado

CALDWELL COUNTY, N.C. — Six months after a tornado knocked the steeple off the roof of Mount Hermon United Methodist in Caldwell County, the congregation is ready to make the building whole again. Two tornados hit the area last fall and cleanup is still underway from Granite Falls to Hudson.

[READ MORE: Storm topples steeple as church members take shelter in basement]

This week, they are hoping to raise a new steeple that is equipped with speakers. It's a powerful example of just how long it takes to recover from such a damaging storm.

Many of the roofs in the neighborhood have been replaced after the tornado took down dozens of trees in the area north of Hickory.

Channel 9 was at the Hickory Regional Airport when one of the tornados touched down.  It was an EF2 tornado with 100-plus mph winds. That storm alone damaged 500 homes across the foothills.

This spring, the city of Hickory is still working to clean up the trees that fell in several of its parks on the north side of town.

Cox Media Group