Friday, April 17, 2020

Tornado Outbreak Tears Across the South, Killing 33

Ron Brackett and Jan Wesner Childs
Published: April 14, 2020



At least 33 people were killed as a tornado outbreak slashed across the South on Sunday and Monday, destroying hundreds of homes and businesses and leaving numerous towns with widespread, severe damage.
There were more than 60 reports of tornadoes as the storms that began on Easter Sunday tore a deadly and destructive path from Texas and Arkansas, across Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Georgia and into the Carolinas and Tennessee.
More than 1 million homes and businesses lost power as a result of the outbreak, according to poweroutage.us. On Monday, outages were the most significant in North and South Carolina, where nearly half a million customers had no electricity Monday morning, but every state from Texas to the mid-Atlantic was affected. High winds were responsible for outages in many areas not affected by tornadoes.

South Carolina

Gov. Henry McMaster said on Monday afternoon that the powerful storms that ripped through the state overnight killed at least nine people in South Carolina.
Pictured here is the site where a mobile home was located before it was destroyed by an EF3 tornado on Monday, April 13, 2020, near Livingston, South Carolina.
Jack F. Harvill, 77, of Walhalla, South Carolina, was killed about 3:30 a.m. in Seneca, about 35 miles west of Greenville, when a tornado struck the BorgWarner auto parts manufacturing plant where Harvill worked as a security guard, the Greenville News reported, citing a release from Oconee County Coroner Karl Addis. Oconee County Emergency Services Emergency Management Director Scott Krein said several other people were injured, according to WSPA.
The Hampton County Emergency Management Agency reported five people were killed in the county. At least three of the deaths were in Nixville, South Carolina, the National Weather Service reported.
"In Nixville and Estill, we’re looking at serious devastation in those areas," Hampton County Council Chairman Clay Bishop told the Post and Courier. "There’s numerous houses destroyed."
Nixville is just across the South Carolina-Georgia border, about 70 miles southeast of Augusta. The tornado tore through the Ginn Hill family's mobile homes.
Angie Ginn said she found her husband's brother Jim Breland, Jim's wife, Donna, and their daughter Kayla Breland dead in a field after the tornado.
Orangeburg County Sheriff Leroy Ravenell told WTOC two people died when their home in Neeses was lifted by heavy winds and dropped on a highway. The NWS later confirmed the damage was caused by an EF3 tornado with maximum winds of 140 mph.
Emma Pritchett wipes a tear away as she looks through her home the day after a tornado hit, Monday, April 13, 2020, in Chatsworth, Georgia.
Colleton County Coroner Richard Harvey told WCIV his office is investigating one death that occurred as a result of the storm. The person had not been identified publicly. Colleton County Fire-Rescue Chief Barry McRoy said the victim was an elderly woman who was killed when a large pine tree fell on her home during the storm. A child and an elderly man who were in the bed with the woman suffered injuries that weren't life threatening and were taken to the Colleton Medical Center.
A number of tornado warnings were issued in the lower part of South Carolina, and damage was reported in Walterboro, about 40 miles west-northwest of Charleston, in Colleton County. The NWS said several structures were damaged and numerous trees and power lines were down. Two people were reportedly trapped in their home when trees fell on it.
Planes were flipped and hangars damaged at the Lowcountry Regional Airport in Walterboro. At least a dozen airplanes were destroyed and many of the hangars had their roofs ripped off, the Post and Courier reported.
As the line of storms continued to push to the northeast, another tornado was reported in Moncks Corner, South Carolina. Several homes in that city sustained major damage.
Damage from falling trees was reported in many other South Carolina counties, too.

Georgia

Earlier Monday, at least seven people were killed and almost two dozen were hurt when storms tore through Murray County on the Georgia-Tennessee border. The fatalities were in two mobile home parks near Chatsworth, Georgia, Dwayne Bain, director of the Murray County Emergency Management Agency and fire chief, told the Daily Citizen-News. Two people were missing.
An overturned mobile home is seen after a tornado hit, Monday, April 13, 2020, in Chatsworth, Georgia.
In Bartow County, a 34-year-old man was killed about 1 a.m. Monday when a large tree crashed onto his home in Cartersville, Georgia, about 35 miles northwest of Atlanta, WSB-TV reported. The man was asleep at the time, the TV station reported. Two other people inside the house were injured.
South of Atlanta, in Yatesville, a tornado blew a house off its foundation and into the middle of State Highway 74, WGCL reported. The Upson County Sheriff's Office said no one was in the house at the time of the tornado.

North Carolina

The Davidson County Sheriff’s Office says 61-year-old Beverly Johnson of Lexington, North Carolina, was killed when a tree crashed into her bedroom, according to the Dispatch. Her husband sustained cracked ribs and broken wrists when the tree fell.
Alton Hanes, Davidson County Emergency Management coordinator, said, "We had a swath of some form of severe weather that came through the Southmont and Central area. We had multiple reports of trees down on structures and vehicles causing significant property damage. It is pretty bad down there."
Sgt. Travis Harper with the North Carolina Highway Patrol said a large tree fell across N.C. Highway 8 in the Southmont area blocking both lanes for about 30 minutes.
Trees fell on homes in southeastern Alamance County near Sutphin and Saxapahaw, but there were no reports of serious injuries, WTVD reported. The NWS later confirmed the damage in that area was consistent with at least an EF1 tornado.
Closer to the coast, EF1 tornadoes were confirmed in Pender and Columbus counties, and an EF0 tornado was confirmed after a waterspout came onshore on Oak Island.

Tennessee

At least 20 people had to be taken to hospitals and more than 150 structures were damaged or destroyed in Hamilton County, which surrounds Chattanooga, Tennessee.
At least two people died in Hamilton County, including a 29-year-old man who was killed by a tree, the Chattanooga Times Free Press reported. Raffell Jenkins died in bed next to his fiancee when he was crushed by a tree that fell on their bedroom. His fiancee crawled out from under ceiling debris with minor injuries, Jenkins' aunt Flossie Parrish told the Times Free Press.
The NWS office in Morristown said a storm survey found EF3 damage with winds estimated around 145 mph in the East Chattanooga tornado.
Hamilton County Emergency Management Communications Director Amy Maxwell told the Times Free Press more than 500 first responders were conducting a "grid search" of the hardest-hit areas.
"We're still in the rescue mode and that's pretty much going through the area which was affected, going door to door to make sure that we got everyone accounted for," Maxwell said. "Obviously, there's significant damage in East Brainerd and East Ridge, but the total destruction is in East Ridge."
About 65 residents of an Alzheimer's living facility were moved to a nearby hotel after the buildings there were damaged in the storm, according to The Weather Channel's Dave Malkoff, who was reporting from the scene. Malkoff pointed out where parts of the roof were ripped off.
In neighboring Bradley County, six people were taken to a hospital with non-critical injuries, Troy Spence, director of Bradley County Emergency Management, told the Times Free Press. Fifteen people were moved to hotels in a hotel after their homes were severely damaged, Spence said.

Mississippi

The Mississippi Emergency Management Agency confirmed at least 11 people had been killed there: four in Jefferson Davis County, two in Jones, two in Lawrence, and one each in Carroll, Panola and Walthall counties.
Amber Phillips stands outside the family's safe room, located on their property in Moss, Mississippi, following a tornado, Monday, April 13, 2020.
At least five homes were destroyed in Walthall County and other injuries were reported.
The Lawrence County victims were Sheriff's Deputy Robert Ainsworth and his wife, Paula.
"Robert left this world a hero, as he shielded Mrs. Paula during the tornado," the sheriff's office said on Facebook.
Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves declared a state of emergency Sunday night.
"This is not how anyone wants to celebrate Easter Sunday," Reeves said.
Two long-track tornadoes followed similar paths across parts of the state.
Photos showed the damage and severe weather in the Jones County town of Soso, where one resident told CNN she rode out the storm at the volunteer fire station, which sustained damage.
"All I had was my arms to put over my son and mother-in-law," Candice Pitts said. "Was near a solid glass door that blew out and the roof in many places tore off or collapsed. My car was park(ed) under a shed that is now blown over in a yard nearby. It's mangled."

Arkansas

In Jefferson County, Arkansas, on Sunday, a person also died when a tree fell on a home. County Emergency Management Director Karen Blevins told weather.com the incident happened in the town of White Hall. Blevins said trees and power lines were down throughout the county and a handful of homes had been damaged.

Alabama

Two people were hurt and dozens of buildings were damaged in the north Alabama city of Boaz on Sunday. Anita McBurnett, director of the Marshall County Emergency Management Agency, told AL.com the damage to an undetermined number of buildings ranged from minor to destroyed. Boaz Police Chief Josh Gaskin said more than 50 homes and buildings were affected.
The NWS office in Huntsville, Alabama, said preliminary information indicated there was an EF2 tornado in Boaz in Marshall County; an EF1 in Shiloh in DeKalb County; an EF1 in Johnsons Crossing in Cullman County; and an EF0 in Collinsville in DeKalb County.
The NWS in Birmingham confirmed an EF2 tornado in Oneonta and an EF0 in Locust Fork.

Louisiana

Earlier, damaging storms and possible tornadoes destroyed homes and businesses, toppled trees and knocked out electricity across several areas of Louisiana.
About 300 homes were damaged or destroyed in Monroe, Louisiana, police Sgt. Chuck Johnson told The Weather Channel. The city was working to secure about 200 hotel rooms to shelter families who were displaced. They were trying to avoid housing large numbers of people in one place due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Social distancing posed challenges for emergency officials as they opened shelters during the storm and considered where to house those affected after. Many handed out masks and gloves at storm shelters, while others decided not to open at all.
Gov. John Bel Edwards declared a state of emergency.
"The images and reports of major tornado damage in the Monroe area are heartbreaking, and my prayers are with the people there. We are in contact with local officials in the area to provide support," the governor said on Twitter.
There were no immediate reports of major injuries.
"Pray for our city! Many neighbors & friends suffered catastrophic damage," Monroe Mayor Jamie Mayo said on Twitter. "We are hurting; but not broken."
The NWS declared a tornado emergency for Monroe in Ouachita Parish at 11:44 a.m. CDT. Doppler radar confirmed a large and destructive tornado was hitting parts of the city.
At least 20 homes were damaged in the Sunflower Subdivision of Monroe, according to a local media report sent to the NWS.
A video on Facebook showed extensive damage. As a family walks out of a destroyed home, the video showed the front of the house had been ripped away and the living room and dining room were exposed to the rain.
The city of Monroe Twitter account said, "We have reports of wind (or tornado) damage in multiple locations in Monroe." The city also posted photos of damage.
Images on social media showed several damaged planes and buildings ripped apart at Monroe Regional Airport.
Ron Phillips, director of the airport, said all flights were canceled until further notice. A hangar owned by AVFlight was heavily damaged, Phillips told the News Star, and he estimated there was $25 to $30 million worth of damage to the planes there.
Two semi trucks reportedly blew over on Interstate 20 near U.S. Highway 165.
Across the Ouachita River in West Monroe, Mayor Staci Albritton Mitchell told the New Star that houses in her city “have been leveled.” She also said police safely rescued some people from their homes after they were trapped by falling trees.
About 45 miles west of Monroe, dozens of trees sheared off in the story blocked eastbound Interstate 20, according to KSLA.
The Shreveport Times said the NWS reported tornadoes in four parishes earlier Sunday: Lincoln, Bienville, DeSoto and Webster parishes.
A Twitter user posted images of damage in Kingston, Louisiana, which is in DeSoto Parish.
Mark Pierce, a spokesman for the Desoto Parish Sheriff’s Office, told weather.com that multiple trees and power lines were down in Kingston and surrounding areas, and a few mobile homes were hit. A large tree was blocking U.S. Highway 84 heading into Mansfield.
“We’ve had some pretty significant damage,” Pierce said.
He said the sheriff and road crews were still out assessing the impacts, but there had not been any reports of injuries.
The Weather Company’s primary journalistic mission is to report on breaking weather news, the environment and the importance of science to our lives. This story does not necessarily represent the position of our parent company, IBM.
The Weather Company’s primary journalistic mission is to report on breaking weather news, the environment and the importance of science to our lives. This story does not necessarily represent the position of our parent company, IBM.
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