At least two are dead and more than 100 people are injured following a violent weather outbreak across the state of Alabama on Monday.
The state’s first tornado warning was issued shortly after 2:00 a.m. in Pickens County and, by daybreak, damage had been reported in Tuscaloosa, Perry, Chilton, Shelby, Talladega and Jefferson Counties, said Jim Stefkovich, chief meteorologist at the Birmingham office of the National Weather Service, according to an al.com post.
Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley declared a state of emergency for all 67 Alabama counties following the outbreak.
The governor authorizes various state agencies to assist communities and make the appropriate assessments of damage when a state of emergency is declared.
“Our Emergency Management Agency will continue to monitor this severe weather and will be prepared for any potential impact on our communities. State agencies are on call and ready to assist communities,” Bentley said in a press release. “I urge Alabamians to heed weather warnings to protect their families, homes and businesses. The severe weather outbreak of last year is still fresh on our minds and is a reminder that we must take the threat of severe weather seriously.”
Meteorologist James Spann, who led coverage of the storm through the early morning, blogged his thoughts on ABC 33/40’s “The Alabama Weather Blog” throughout the night.
“Once again, this morning, we are picking up the pieces after a tragic night of tornadoes across Central Alabama,” Spann wrote. “An apparent long track tornado, or series of tornadoes, moved across northern Tuscaloosa and northern Jefferson County early this morning.”
Spann said the first damage was reported north of Coker in northern Tuscaloosa County. It moved across Lake Tuscaloosa, he wrote, and then through the relatively unpopulated part of northern Tuscaloosa County.
The blog listed Taylors Ferry Road in western Jefferson County, Oak Grove, Fultondale, Pinson Valley, Center Point, Clay Chalkville, Trussville and Margaret as areas with extensive damage.
Kristin Ware, a sophomore majoring in secondary education, said her church, Northpark Baptist, is located right in between Clay and Trussville, so many of her church members are from there.
“Last I heard, there were 14-plus members who had either lost their homes or had them damaged,” Ware said. “One of my friends had a tree come through her ceiling, but thankfully, her family had already gone to a safe place. Another family lost their home, but thankfully, all of them were OK.”
