News Talk 94.1/AM 1600 Where The Upper Cumberland Talks
Putnam County saw more tourism requests last week and officials believe it’s Floridians fleeing Hurricane Irma.
Cookeville-Putnam County Chamber of Commerce Vice President of Visitor Development Zach Ledbetter said a number of inquiries about accommodations all came from the Tennessee welcome center near Chattanooga.
“So we got our guide that shows all the accommodation listings to that welcome center and they started promoting it as a short drive from Chattanooga, don’t have go to into a larger metro for those visitors that can’t quite afford that,” Ledbetter said.
Ledbetter said he didn’t have statistics yet, but several hotels around Cookeville had reported higher than usual occupancy.
“As we always are a hospitable community keep that up, if you see license plates, especially from Florida right now, keep that in mind and offer a helping hand if possible,” Ledbetter said.
Hurricane Irma spurred the largest evacuation orders in United States history.
