1 month ago
2
ATHENS, Ala. —
Thousands of people were left without power.
The City of Athens posted overnight that they knew there was damage to downtown, and as the sun rose, it became clear there was intense debris. Crews were called in to help.
The National Weather Service surveyed the area Sunday and determined that it was hit by an EF-1 tornado from 11:15 to 11:20 p.m., with estimated peak winds of 100 miles per hour. It covered 3.87 miles and was 100 yards wide.
The NWS report said. "The tornado began by snapping a few large softwood branches on Sanderfer Road just west of the intersection with Jefferson Street. From there, the tornado skipped north/northeast, snapping several larger hardwood trees just south of an apartment complex on Southwind Drive. The tornado continued racing northward, snapping softwood branches and a few trees on Commercial Drive, south of Highway 72. The tornado produced its first building damage at the KFC at this location, blowing a portion of the roof off and strewing it across the highway and into the parking lot of the Taco Bell across the street. From this point northward, the tornado became more organized and strengthened as it zipped northward into downtown Athens.
"Several power poles were snapped along Madison Street as the tornado moved north/northeastward along Jeffrey Street. Quite a few large soft and hardwood trees were snapped and uprooted in this area as well, beginning the EF1 damage portion of the path. Damage from this point in the path onward garnered lots of media attention for the amount of roof damage and debris strewn throughout the square near the Courthouse in downtown Athens. Several roofs from buildings on every side of the square had portions of their roof removed, beginning with the roof completely torn off of the CEI Bookstore at the intersection of Green Street and Marion Street. From there, numerous other buildings downtown had at least some form of roof damage, with debris strewn to the north/northeast one to two blocks up, between the intersections of Washington and Market Streets along Marion Street."
WVTM 13 meteorologists were on air during the severe storms for hours to keep people aware, and during the broadcast noticed a radar-indicated rotation in the area around the time that coincides with what officials were describing.
Photos and videos below show downtown Athens.
English (US)