At Least 35 Tornadoes Form Along Gulf Coast, Killing Two People in Alabama

Posted: November 30, 2022 4:10 pm

At least two people lost their lives as a result of a massive tornado outbreak late Tuesday across Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana. The outbreak also created widespread power outages and damaged several structures. Here is the latest on this rare late November tornadic event.

Dozens of Tornadoes Touch Down Across Gulf Coast

Officials are reporting at least 35 tornadoes across the Gulf Coast on Tuesday, leading to the two fatalities and numerous injuries. The two deaths are being reported as a 39-year-old woman and a two-year-old boy. The victims, reportedly in the same family, were killed after a tornado touched down early Wednesday in the Boylston Community of North Montgomery, Alabama.

As of mid-day Wednesday, search and rescue efforts are still ongoing in North Montgomery. Elsewhere in Alabama, a twister tore off the roof of an apartment complex in Eutaw, located about 80 miles southwest of Birmingham on Tuesday night. In addition to the roof being ripped off the Sagewood apartment complex, the building also sustained damage to the interior walls.

Fortunately, the mayor of Eutaw is reporting that there were no reported injuries or fatalities. Residents of the apartment building were able to shelter in place in walk-in closets and other interior locations. At least 16 apartments in the complex have been deemed unsafe by Wednesday morning. Eutaw officials were busy Wednesday clearing streets that were littered with downed tree limbs and other debris.

The same tornado that wreaked havoc in Eutaw then tracked into Hale County where it damaged dozens of homes. The community is expected to be in the dark for days after power lines were brought down by the long-lasting twister.

Damage Reports in Louisiana and Mississippi

Alabama is not the only state dealing with mass power outages. Crews in neighboring Mississippi and Louisiana are also working to restore power.

A tornado in Lowndes County in Mississippi left several people trapped inside the Malone’s Grocery Store late Tuesday afternoon. All of the trapped individuals made it out safely. Also in Lowndes County, a church steeple flew off the building and a fire station sustained heavy damage.

According to the Storm Prediction Center (SPC), there were at least 20 confirmed tornado touchdowns in Mississippi. Alabama recorded 13 tornadoes while Louisiana saw at least twisters on the ground.

A tornado in Caldwell Parish in Louisiana triggered damage and injured at least two people. Caldwell Parish Sheriff Clay Bennett confirmed the damage that included trees landing on homes and large pieces of scattered debris.

Large Hail Also Reported

The tornadoes were not the only impacts of this severe line of storm cells. The storms also brought large hail measuring as big as 2 inches in damage. November is not a typical time of the year to expect to see hail of this magnitude across the Gulf Coast. Hail as large as golf balls was reported farther to the north in Dickson Tennessee, about 35 miles west of Nashville.

The storms did not come out of nowhere. Forecasters had been warning of the threat of severe weather for this part of the nation since last week. The National Weather Service (NWS) issued a tornado watch for much of the Gulf Coast on Tuesday afternoon as the thunderstorms began to fire up across the region.

The watch included the designation of a “particularly dangerous situation” (PDS), a category used by the NWS to put residents on high alert for long-lived tornadoes in the near future. The designation of a PDS was only the third such warning of 2022. Additionally, Tuesday’s PDS was the first to occur during the month of November since 2013.

The line of storms moved to the east on Wednesday, bringing impacts to the Southeast. While this part of the country will see isolated storms on and off throughout the day, it is not predicted to hit the same level of intensity as Tuesday’s weather maker.

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