TELLICO PLAINS, Tenn. — The Tennessee Department of Transportation announced the reopening of Cherohala Skyway in Monroe County on Friday.
The road has been closed since Aug. 15 due to heavy rains in Tellico Plains. The Cherokee National Forest was damaged by both flooding and winds during storms that swept through the area, temporarily blocking some campgrounds and damaging roads.
The national park said many areas of the Tellico Ranger District and areas north of it, including the Cherohala Skyway, were inaccessible at the time. Crews worked to clear roadways and were clearing campers that were blocked in the campgrounds.
"We had a whole lot of wind damage up north, in the northern end up close to the state line. The Tellico Plains area was mainly a water event. The USGS monitoring station showed an increase of around 20,000 cubic feet per second, in a span of two hours," Christopher Joyner, the public affairs officer for the Cherokee National Forest, said.
Joyner said small creeks in the area swelled quickly, bringing a ranger station underwater. He also said they flooded all through the building and the parking lots, which washed much of the foundation out.
He said they are working to provide updates on the damage on their Facebook page and on their website. When they have a better idea of the conditions of the roads, they said they would post them online.
