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NWS surveying possible tornado damage in Alabama as severe weather hits several states

Alabama Public Radio | By Baillee Majors,

Published April 3, 2024 at 4:14 AM CDT

The National Weather Service (NWS) says a survey team will be assessing possible tornado damage in Dallas and Chilton counties after a round of severe weather blew through Alabama on the evening of Tuesday, April 2 into the early morning of Wednesday, April 3.

Alabama Power's outage map showed around 5,000 Alabamians were without power as of 4:00 a.m. CT on Wednesday.

The severe threat has ended for Central AL, and the remaining Tornado Watch has been cancelled. A survey team will be assessing damage in Chilton and Dallas county later today. More details to come. #alwx pic.twitter.com/ugfaZos1zr
— NWS Birmingham (@NWSBirmingham) April 3, 2024

This round of severe weather comes as Alabama enters what's considered the most active spring month for tornadoes. The NWS says the State’s primary tornado season is early March to May, with the largest number of tornadoes occurring in the month of April.

FILE - In this file photo taken May 4, 2011, Tuscaloosa Fire Lt. Brian Phillips climbs a pile of rubble in search of survivors or bodies at an apartment building in Tuscaloosa, Ala. On April 27, 2011, a series of tornadoes killed hundreds of people, injured thousands and reduced countless buildings to rubble across a swath of the U.S. Casualties were reported in Mississippi, Georgia, Tennessee, Virginia and Alabama - which was the hardest hit, with a death toll of more than 250 in that state alone. (AP Photo/Dave Martin, File)

It was during this month back in 2011 that a massive tornado outbreak killed more than 250 people statewide, caused billions in damage and reshaped entire communities.

FILE - This is an April 30, 2011 file photo of tornado damage in Tuscaloosa, Ala., following an April 27, 2011 tornado. Monday, July 18 is the final day to apply for federal aid from the tornadoes that ravaged Alabama this past spring. Officials say about 86,000 tornado survivors already have registered for assistance with the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and the time to apply by phone or over the Internet runs out at the end of the day. (AP Photo/Dave Martin)

During the April 27, 2011, outbreak, tornadoes plowed across the Eastern U.S. over four days, killing more than 320 people in six states and causing an estimated $12 billion in damage. Thousands were injured in hardest-hit Alabama, and thousands of homes, businesses, churches and other structures were destroyed. Cleanup costs exceeded $100 million in Tuscaloosa alone.

To help document the outbreak, the National Weather Service created an extensive online archive with details about the more than 60 twisters that hit Alabama. More on the state's tornado season and severe weather preparedness resources can be found here.

The recent severe weather event in Alabama struck as thousands of homes and businesses were without power across the country on Tuesday as severe weather roared through several states, causing at least one death and spawning possible tornadoes.

Parts of Ohio, Pennsylvania, Kentucky, Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee, West Virginia, Virginia and Georgia were under tornado watches into Tuesday night, while Wisconsin was experiencing a spring snowstorm.

Storms in Northeastern Oklahoma unleashed three suspected tornadoes and dumped heavy rain that was blamed for the death of a 46-year-old homeless woman in Tulsa who was sheltering inside a drainage pipe.

In West Virginia, about 140,000 customers were without electricity Tuesday afternoon, or about 14% of all customers tracked in the state by poweroutage.us. A storm blew off part of a vacant building’s roof in Charleston, littering the street with bricks and closing the roadway to traffic. Trees were uprooted and lay in roads, lawns and in some cases, on top of cars.

In Ohio, firefighters rescued two people who were trapped under a bridge Tuesday morning when a river began rising. The two were sleeping when the Scioto River started to rise, preventing them from returning to shore, the Columbus Fire Department reported. A fire department boat was sent to rescue them. No injuries were reported.

Another round of storms Tuesday afternoon led to multiple tornado warnings in Kentucky, Tennessee and Ohio.

One person was hurt and taken to a hospital after a tree came down on their house in Lexington, Kentucky, Mayor Linda Gorton told WLEX-TV. Homes were damaged and a tree crushed a University of Kentucky student's car.

The National Weather Service confirmed a tornado in northeast Tennessee on Tuesday. The utility company in Memphis, Tennessee, reported that about 40,000 homes and businesses lost power temporarily Tuesday morning after an electric substation was struck by lightning, which then affected two other substations.

Severe weather was expected to move into New England on Wednesday night into Thursday, with forecasts of 12 to 18 inches (30 to 46 centimeters) of snow in parts of New Hampshire and Maine and lesser amounts in other areas, the National Weather Service said. Wind gusts could reach 50 mph (80 kph) in some places, bringing the possibility of power outages.

Read more about the severe weather sprawling across several states, spawning potential tornadoes, here.