Today we revisit the devastation left by a massive system of tornadoes and storms that struck Alabama almost three weeks ago, on April 27th, 2011, claiming nearly 250 lives in the state alone. Photographer Julie Dermansky recently traveled to some of the hardest-hit regions, looking for stories about what's next for them and finding signs of abiding faith and patriotism. Dermansky went to some of the areas that were hit by F-4 and F-5 tornadoes, including Tuscaloosa and the Birmingham suburbs: "Crews from around the country are out in force, clearing debris and fixing power lines in deathly still neighborhoods," she writes. "American flags and religious messages punctuate apocalyptic landscapes."
Signs of Hope in Alabama's Tornado Wreckage
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Georg Hamilton, 87, of Pleasant Grove, Alabama, considers himself the most blessed man in the world because he left his house five minutes before it was obliterated by one of the tornadoes that struck on April 27th, 2011. Photo taken on May 12, 2011. #
© Julie Dermanksy -
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Cordova's historic downtown is a shell of its former self and may have to be torn down after two tornadoes recently ripped through the Alabama town. Photo taken on May 11, 2011. #
© Julie Dermansky -
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Smithfield, a suburb of Birmingham, remains in a state of ruin over two weeks after it was hit by an F-4 (possibly an F-5) tornado, one of an estimated 300 that struck Alabama and the neighboring states on April 27th , 2011. #
© Julie Dermansky -
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In this May 11, 2011 photo, a destroyed church in Pratt City, Alabama, is seen, with a blue tarp covering the gaping hole left in its facade by a tornado two weeks earlier. #
© Julie Dermansky -
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A destroyed car rests in the rubble left in a tornado's path with a reference to a Bible verse ("For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.") on a sign placed next to it in Tuscaloosa, on May 10, 2011. #
© Julie Dermansky -
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Home totaled by a tornado in Alabama marked with messages, including the name of an insurance company, and "Roll Tide", the rally cry of the University of Alabama, in Pleasant Grove, a suburb of Birmingham Alabama, on May 12, 2011. #
© Julie Dermansky -
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James Bond stands in front of his destroyed house 16 days after a tornado struck, in Pleasant Grove, Alabama. Bond, his wife and one of their two dogs survived, an they plan to rebuild. #
© Julie Dermansky -
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