More than 30 million South Americans faced the threat of bad weather after several deadly tornadoes affected the region on Thursday. They sent sparks and debris flying through northeastern Alabama.
A major tornado hit Coweta County, Atlanta, at midnight on Friday, prompting an emergency return for the city of Newnan and surrounding areas. No deaths were reported.
At least five people were killed in storms Thursday in Calhoun County, Alabama, northeast of Birmingham. People trapped in flattened houses were also reported.
Much of Alabama was in a state of emergency as a large tornado left a trail of destruction in a 50-mile-long area of Tuscaloosa in Birmingham Thursday before. Instant return and flood flood alerts have been issued in Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee and Georgia.
Strong winds uprooted the trees and crashed them to the roofs. Some of the worst damage occurred in the Eagle Point subdivision in Shelby County, Alabama. The torn ceilings revealed the interior of the bedrooms and images of the drones showed the homeowners sweeping the debris.
Butch Dill / AP
“It was scary,” owner Carol Willis said. “The noise was amazing.”
Willis’ garage was damaged, but his house was mostly saved. He described the terrifying moments the tornado went through his community.
“I was standing at the window of this bedroom, I looked outside and it was getting dark. I said, well I’d better get out of this room. I had a metal trash can. I said , so let me run to my laundry. I put the trash on my head, I went in, I wasn’t there more than two minutes. I went out and saw all this. I couldn’t believe it, it so fast, ”he said.
The city of Pelham was also hit hard. Just 20 miles south of Birmingham, at least 14,000 people in the area are without electricity.
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