HUNTSVILLE, Ala. — As we near one week since a series of tornadoes and severe storms struck across the Tennessee Valley, cleanup continues in many of the hardest-hit locations. One of those is the Maple Hill Cemetery near the Five Points and Twickenham communities in Huntsville.
The cemetery remains closed to the general public while work continues to make necessary repairs.
Huntsville City Administrator John Hamilton said it's too early to tell when the full extent of the damage will be known. He also said cleanup is taking longer than expected because there are still unsafe areas on the property.
"For those people that want to just come and look around, we really need them to stay out of the cemetery right now," Hamilton said. "It's just not safe to have large numbers of people there. We certainly will accommodate those with a legitimate purpose for being there. But right now, the people who use it to do walking exercises, find a different place to go walk or jog.
"Let's wait a few days. Let's get the trees cleared out of there. But we do intend to have it open for those who need to be in the cemetery tomorrow."
The city has previously said that officials will contact families of loved ones whose gravesites have been damaged in the storms.
Nine tornadoes have been confirmed from the May 8 storms by the National Weather Service, including an EF-1 that hit the Five Points area. Two of the strongest of that night's storms, both EF-3 tornadoes, struck the Brigadoon and Henegar communities.