The trail left by the EF5 tornado in Mississippi is much shorter than a similar trail that cuts across northwestern Alabama. Although not a main damage indicator, there was also evidence of vehicles being moved, but only a couple of feet. The storm was racing off to the northeast at 45 mph, in the general direction of Birminghams southern suburbs, which it may approach in about 45 minutes. No vehicles were tossed, only pushed slightly from their original position. The effects of the tornado arguably contributed to a decrease in affordable housing in what has been called "an uneven recovery" for Tuscaloosa.[25]. Know how to get there quickly.. It then went on to impact parts of Birmingham at high-end EF4 intensity before dissipating. The trail of damage stretched 80.3 miles (129.2 kilometers) long and as much as 1.5 miles (2.4 kilometers) wide. A small club house that was anchored to a foundation, but with apparently no interior walls, was completely destroyed and swept from its foundation. The storm, at one point, was 1.5 miles wide. Multiple trailer homes destroyed as well this church and a large commercial building. #alwx pic.twitter.com/cpMwa23Q8L. A nearby two story apartment building was reduced to rubble sitting on the foundation. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Advance Local. ON TV: Witness: Tornado Swarm 2011 airs Sunday, May 29, 9 p.m. ET/PT >>. The storms deadliness recalled an April 2011 tornado that killed 13 in Calhoun County, Brown said. However, this was revised to 64 deaths and more than 1,500 injuries. @NWSBirmingham @spann #alwx pic.twitter.com/0QhnzMfgRZ. A typical tornado track is 1 to 2 miles long, according to weather service data. Another tornado on Feb. 2, a deadly EF-2, had a 25.87-mile path through Greene and Hale counties. That means being able to shelter in a basement, storm cellar or interior room, away from windows, on the lowest floor of a site-built location at a moments notice. The storm did regenerate itself and eventually put down the EF-4tornado in the Ohatchee area. The weather service said the tornado continued northeast into Chambers County, causing EF-0 to EF-1 damage. Know the location of the nearest shelter, or business that is open 24/7, wrote James Spann, a veteran meteorologist at ABC 33/40 in Birmingham known for walking Alabamians through scores of historic outbreaks. Thats an ominous atmospheric signal of a violent weather day. Long-track, strong to violent tornadoes are possible. The tornado weakened more as it neared Highway 77 and dissipated shortly after crossing County Road 114. It turns out another tornado from Thursday would also qualify as a long-track storm: The EF-1 twister that left a 30.4-mile-long track through parts of Lawrence, Morgan and Limestone counties in northwest Alabama. The start point is based on aerial survey, while the end location was determined by a ground crew. About Radar As of 615 pm , there are currently no active warnings in effect in central Alabama. The weather service said the most severe damage was observed from County Road 43 to County Road 42, and wind speeds were estimated to have reached at least 150 mph. Between 7:00 a.m. CDT on April 25 and 7:00 a.m. on April 28, a total of 305 tornadoes struck the southeastern and central United States, according to a preliminary estimate from NOAA released May 4. Tornado Warnings for counties in Central Alabamawere in effect from338 pm until800 pm with this supercell. Numerous homes, apartment buildings, and a large church sustained significant damage as the tornado entered Birmingham's city limits and impacted the neighborhood of Pratt City. The watch, reserved for the most serious severe weather situations, calls for numerous tornadoes and several intense tornadoes, widespread damaging wind gusts up to 80 mph, and widespread large hail. Social media photos show severe damage to homes in Eagle Point, which is near Meadowbrook, Ala. and about 10 miles southeast of Birmingham. Then, as the lower atmosphere is heated, the cap will break allowing storms to explosively develop. Life Along the same stretch, the bodies of a man and woman were blown almost 100 feet from their mobile home. An outbreak of severe weather, including several destructive tornadoes, swept across the South Thursday, killing at least five people in Alabama and one in Georgia. Along 15th St E. and McFarland Blvd E., several small restaurants and stores were destroyed, with only a wall or two still standing. BUT, the actual count will be far, far less. The tan-toned, debris-filled path passes through the center of town, affecting both commercial and residential properties. Tuscaloosa and the additional four West Alabama counties were added at about 6 p.m. A tornado watch means conditions are favorable for severe thunderstorms or tornadoes in an area. As of 7 p.m., there were no tornado warnings in effect over Alabama but scattered storms continued, some severe. Info: Tornado reports do not correspond to the number of tornadoes that occurred. Long-track tornadoes are nothing new in Alabama. Alberta Elementary School suffered nearly complete destruction, with only a few portions of walls still standing. That was certainly the same parent storm that produced what is likely to be more than one tornado along its trek across our area, weather service meteorologist Gerald Satterwhite said Friday via email. Along the way, it stripped a school bus down to its chassis. A four-sided brick home in the same areaonly lost a roof and no exterior walls, which is indicative of EF-2 damage. The weather service said that radar showed a debris ball in southern Coosa County which matched ground observation of a wide area of snapped pine trees on either side of McKissick Road between the communities of Speed and Equality. 2023 Advance Local Media LLC. More photos of severe damage are emerging from the long-track tornadic storm which has cut across central Alabama. A marina on Holt Lake was significantly impacted, with numerous boats and a restaurant destroyed; some boats were tossed over 330 feet (100m) in this area. The watch indicates a near certainty (95 percent chance) of at least one strong tornado that produces EF2 or higher damage on the 0 to 5 Enhanced Fujita scale. 4:43 p.m. - A large supercell beginning in Mississippi dropped an EF-4 tornado packing winds of up to 190 m.p.h. pic.twitter.com/CAk7Qq0afu. April 27, 2011. A total of 20 people were killed throughout Birmingham and its surrounding suburbs. EF-3 damage in the Kingston area of Autauga County, Buy newspaper front pages, posters and more. Thats why meteorologists stress on days such as Thursday that its imperative to stay weather-aware, have a plan and know what to do. Initially over West and Southwest Alabama Monday, and statewide Monday night and Tuesday." The National Weather Service in Birmingham issues the following guidelines for our coverage area. Caption by Michon Scott. 4 p.m. - An EF-3 tornado touched down in Marion County, gaining strength west of Hamilton, killing six people and damaging scores of homes. Specific threats will depend on where one is in relation to the overarching storm system, but storms are expected to be both unusually widespread and intense across a large swath of area. PLEASE TAKE COVER if you are in the path of this storm! Weather radar detected an enormous debris ball as the storm passed through Centreville, Ala, about 30 miles southeast of Tuscaloosa, indicating materials from the ground lofted high into the air and significant damage. The storm packed winds of 190 miles (310 kilometers per hour) and left a path of debris running southwest to northeast. The tornado was radar-indicated with no confirmation as of yet. [10][13][14], The tornado then grew from 0.5 miles (0.80km) to 1 mile (1.6km) wide and ripped through the suburb of Holt, leveling and sweeping away homes while still at low-end EF4 strength. past few days tracing the path of Alabamas deadliest tornado, was one of 14 tornadoes that hit Alabama on Jan. 12, killed seven people and injured several others, Buy newspaper front pages, posters and more. The ABC 33/40 feed was periodically disrupted due to power outages caused by wind damage to electrical transformers. DO NOT stay in a mobile home when a watch is issued. 3:45 p.m.: Birmingham ABC affiliate reporter: multiple people pulled from their homes and hospitalized southeast of the city. At least five manufactured homes were blown away with their frames thrown considerable distances, the weather service said. A massive tornado tears through the town of Tuscaloosa, destroying everything in its path (from Tornado Rampage 2011) Show more. The National Weather Service on Friday said it is continuing to assess the damage across the state and is working to confirm just how powerful the storms were. To get the best experience possible, please download a compatible browser. in Greene County. I dont know how.. In all, 240 people died and more than 2,000 people were injured. Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site. In all, 299 Alabamians were killed in the outbreak. Meteorologists found "at least" EF-3. NOAA National Weather Service. All-Hazards Awareness Booklet This is from Lake Purdy, AL of homes totaled by the storm #ALwx #tornado pic.twitter.com/mIs1MClZJI. 2:43 p.m. - An EF-4 tornado cut through the heart of downtown Cullman, damaging more than 800 homes and 94 businesses, altering the cityscape before continuing on into Morgan and Marshall counties. Theres also a cap in place a few thousand feet up a layer of warm, dry desert air that will prevent air near the ground from rising most of the day. He stated further that he had already declared a federal state of emergency in Alabama.[23]. At least one death occurred here. Regional Weather Roundup More EF-3 damage occurred along County Road 18, where the weather service said vehicles were moved or flipped, numerous trees were snapped, one site-built home was destroyed and others heavily damaged. Meanwhile, the Weather Service issued a special bulletin cautioning the environment in eastern Mississippi and northwest Alabama would be turning more favorable for tornadic storms through the afternoon. Hurricane Preparedness Alabama saw 62 tornadoes. (NASA) Recent images of the April 27 storm damage path have been captured by NASA's Terra satellite, part of NASA's Earth Observing Satellite system, or EOS. Severe weather was also occurring outside Alabama with severe thunderstorm and flash flood warnings in effect in northwest Georgia, and a line of severe thunderstorms was sweeping east through western Tennessee. Light poles were damaged along Interstate 65, and a Days Inn and several other commercial buildings sustained major damage along US 31 before the tornado began to rapidly narrow and weaken. It spawned a few tornadoes in Texas on Wednesday and is set to unleash vicious weather across the South. 6:14 a.m. - The damage reached Odenville in St. Clair County, where an EF-2 tornado damaged several homes, including multi-story brick structures. The tornado developed in the southwestern part of the county on the west side of the . One of the cities hit hardest was Tuscaloosa, Ala. A nearly mile wide tornado cut a path though the town, killing 53 people, and injuring 1200 more. Another tornado, an EF-3, had a 29.24-mile path through Perry, Bibb and Shelby counties and injured two people. The Weather Service reported the storm had recently produced tree damage. The tornadoes left behind pockets of severe damage along with reports of injuries and fatalities. Alabama was hit the worst, with the first reported tornado hitting Marion and others hitting Tuscaloosa, Chilton County, and other locales. The majority of it remained within a couple of yards of the home. Devastating images are coming in from tornado damage in the Birmingham, AL area. NASA Earth Observatory image created by Jesse Allen and Robert Simmon, using EO-1 ALI data provided courtesy of the NASA EO-1 team. The tornado strengthened as it crossed the Black Warrior River, north of Interstate 20 and approached Tuscaloosa to a violent EF4 with winds of 170 mph. While uncertainty exists as to how intense individual storms will become and what specific areas will be hit, an extremely serious outbreak of severe weather is anticipated. The tornado has a history of producing damage as it tracked from just south of Tuscaloosa to just south and east of Birmingham. More damage continued to the northeast along County Road 140, where two people were killed in separate homes at the eastern end of the road. This tornado was produced by a supercell thunderstorm that began in Newton County Mississippi at 2:54 pm CDT, and finally dissipated in Macon County, North Carolina at approximately 10:18 pm CDT. More than 50 million Americans are threatened by severe weather, including about 9 million within the two zones of highest risk. The tornado then moved toward Coven Abbett Road and then Elbert Road, damaging several homes and destroying several boat houses. Randy Robbins, a survivor of the Tuscaloosa storm, made it through, with the storm ripping his jeans, watch, glasses, and shirt from his body, leaving only his boxers, a silver cross necklace and his iPhone remaining in his right hand. Davis ran inside and sheltered with his family until the storm passed. Winter Products Description. Only piles of debris were left on the foundation. The emergency includes Montevallo, Wilton, and Calera, Ala. as the confirmed destructive tornado heads east at 50 mph. (2011, May 3). The weather service noted that the damage here, rated high-end EF-2, could be partly due to the interaction of the tornado with the lake surface, as well as the exposed nature of these homes.. Storms laid waste to state parks at Guntersville and Bucks Pocket, with an EF-2 tornado crossing the lake, toppling trees and destroying cabins, a chalet, a wing of the lodge, campers, cars and boats. Heres a look at the updated track of Thursdays deadly tornado from the preliminary storm report from the National Weather Service in Birmingham: The tornado touched down at 12:40 p.m. Jan. 12 west of U.S. Highway 82 near Independence, causing damage to nearby farms. The first was an EF-2 tornado that carved a 35.17-mile path through parts of Choctaw and Marengo counties. https://t.co/r5wRwYAbMV. Social media footage provides ground truth: Awful, awful, awful damage in Centreville, AL. Meteorologists have rated the tornado that took seven lives in Autauga County on Jan. 12 an EF-3, with top winds estimated at 150 mph in spots along its path. Its made up of cold air and counterclockwise spin at high altitudes nestled within a dip in the jet stream. Meteorologists found at least EF-3 damage in the Kingston area of Autauga County, where seven people have died, and at least EF-2 damage in the Selma area. Numerous trees were completely denuded and debarked as the tornado passed near the rural communities of Searles and Mud Creek, and debris from Tuscaloosa was reported to be falling from the sky across Birmingham over 20 miles (32km) away in Jefferson County. The zone most threatened by dangerous storms includes Birmingham and Huntsville, Ala., and Tupelo, Miss. The tornado then moved across the rest of Tallapoosa County causing EF-0 to EF-1 tree damage, including in the Sessions area. Also, to Gene Bussell and his crew with the AlabamaNational Guard for their cooperation with aerial surveys along this track. Additionally, wind rowing of debris was evident throughout the Pleasant Grove community which is characteristic of a storm of thismagnitude. 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