Southern Storms: Birmingham Is Hit
A tornado struck the city Friday, downing tree limbs, causing flooding, and trapping some people under debris.
A tornado struck Birmingham, Alabama, on Friday, downing tree limbs, causing flooding, and trapping some people under debris, officials said.
A few pictures from Jefferson Avenue tornado damage pic.twitter.com/lIelfFxrEd
— City of Birmingham (@cityofbhamal) December 26, 2015The twister touched down at about 5 p.m. local time (6 p.m. ET), prompting a warning from the National Weather Service.
12/26 215AM: flooding threats cont. w/ dense fog SE. Avoid travel 2nite. Details here: https://t.co/GYnRRqfc7u #alwx pic.twitter.com/cZZ2MFgwTL
— NWS Birmingham (@NWSBirmingham) December 26, 2015
The City of Birmingham reported that the storm downed trees, caused severe flooding, trapped some residents under debris. Several people were rescued from their cars, the city said. Lt. Sean Edwards, a Birmingham police spokesman, told the AP several people were taken to hospitals for treatment of minor injuries. As of Saturday morning, 2,800 people were without power, Alabama Power said. The figure on Friday night was 10,000.
The worst of the storms may be over, but flooding continues to be an issue and there still may be some scattered thunderstorms in the area.
On Thursday, Governor Robert Bentley declared a state of emergency after the severe weather. Over the past week, storms have crisscrossed the South, leaving 15 people dead across Mississippi, Tennessee, and Arkansas. The storms are unusual for this time of the year, but not unprecedented.
Tornadoes in southeast Mississippi at this time last year killed four people.
Although the East Coast and parts of the South are seeing record high temperatures for this time of the year, a major winter storm is expected Saturday and Sunday from the southern Rockies to the southern plains.