Alabama Endures Extensive Tornado Damage
On April 27th, the state of Alabama was ravaged by severe tornadoes. Adverse storm conditions began brewing on the 25th and then struck Alabama with full force two days later. During the previous day leading up to the most severe tornado that hit Alabama, slightly less than two hundred tornadoes were reported.
One of the two most severe tornado rocked Tuscaloosa just after five o’clock in the evening. The other worst tornado hit Birmingham right before six o’clock. As a result of the incredibly harsh conditions that came down on Alabama, at least 249 residents of the state were killed.
The tornadoes damaged six Alabama libraries. Three of these libraries endured so much tornado and water damage that officials believe they are beyond repair. There may be up to twelve more libraries that are seriously damaged. Information about these libraries is currently unavailable as a result of communication lines being down.
The town of Phil Campbell endured significant damage. Officials currently estimate that 40% of the town’s houses were completely destroyed. In Mario County, the storm damage stretches for more than twenty-five miles.
Hackleburg is another town that was ravaged by tornado damage. The storm completely ruined the town’s high school. Reports have surfaced that entire subdivisions in this town were destroyed. Additionally, over one hundred different buildings were leveled all the way to the ground.
Alabama’s poultry industry was significantly harmed by this storm. This industry has an annual impact of $8.5 billion. This accounts for a full 10% of the state’s entire economy. Unfortunately, over two hundred poultry houses were damaged during the tornadoes. This amounts to 25% of Alabama’s poultry industry.
Six state parks in Alabama were closed as a result of storm damage. Although the power company is working hard to restore homes with power, at one point approximately 400,000 homes were without it.
Because of the incredible scale of damage caused during these tornadoes, it’s believed that the total cost for insurers will be over one billion dollars. This includes over 5,000 homes throughout the state that were severely damaged.
Because of the severe damage throughout Alabama, there are currently twenty-eight counties that have been approved for federal disaster relief. The counties are Washington, Walker, Tuscaloosa, Tallapoosa, St. Clair, Sumter, Marshall, Marengo, Madison, Limestone, Jefferson, Jackson, Hale, Green, Franklin, Fayette, Etowah, Elmore, DeKalb, Cullman, Choctaw, Cherokee, Calhoun, Blount, Bibb and Autauga.
