By Associated Press
Undated, AL – Severe weather conditions caused damage across Alabama Wednesday. Thunderstorms, heavy winds and tornadoes raked the state, knocking down trees and power lines in their wake and damaging buildings and other structures. In Montgomery, a powerful storm slammed into a recreation facility filled with more than 30 preschoolers, destroying the building as terrified youngsters huddled inside. What could have been a catastrophe turned out to be what some observers called a miracle. Two children received minor injuries but no one was seriously hurt or killed because of quick thinking by staff.
Elsewhere in the state, fallen trees blocked roads, residents were without power and buildings and mobile homes were damaged. Downpours of as much as six inches of rain caused minor flooding.
State Agriculture Commission Ron Sparks says the storms caused heavy damage to some of Alabama's many poultry houses. Sparks says thousands of birds were killed and his staff is surveying the damage to determine the extent of losses. He says his staff will also help farmers in the proper disposal of the dead birds and work with poultry firms and Emergency Management authorities in the cleanup.
No serious injuries were reported in Alabama. The storms were part of a system moving into the state from the west. At least eight people were hurt in Mississippi, and one person was killed in Louisiana.