A mother and her 8-year-old son have died in central Alabama after a tornado with winds of up to 115 mph struck overnight, officials said. Winds of 75 to 80 miles per hour are going to cause damage. New information gathered in the Flatwood community in Montgomery County as part of a preliminary storm survey led the National Weather Service Office in Birmingham Wednesday afternoon to upgrade the tornado's ranking to EF-2 with winds reaching 115 miles per hour. The possible tornado touched down in the 300 block of Williams Drive in the Flatwood Community. Severe thunderstorms rumbled through Central Alabama on Tuesday morning, touching off numerous tornado warnings, downed trees and power lines, sporadic power outages and torrential rains. At least 2 killed in Alabama as severe storms and tornadoes sweep - CNN . Possible Tornado Hits Montgomery Area, Damaging Homes The storm was moving northeast at 50 mph. "It was a pretty significant tornado" with "debris lofted in the air to about 10,000 to 15,000 feet," Satterwhite said. Montgomery County Commission Chairman Doug Singleton said county workers are ready to help in other ways, as well. At least 7 dead after destructive tornadoes hit Alabama - NBC News The Montgomery County EMA said it received reports of damage in the areas of Merriweather Road, Prairie Lane, Rochester Mews, Halcyon Boulevard and Buddy Watson Baseball Park. The company said fallen trees had led to downed wires across the area. There are two distinct areas where the possible tornado caused damage, he said. Exercise caution near chain link fences. Alabama Power said about 3 p.m. it was still assessing the extent of the damage caused by Thursdays tornadoes. This is a breaking story. Rodney Penn was out clearing debris Wednesday morning. Alabama Power officials said service had been restored to about 88% of customers across central Alabama by 11 a.m., but damage to the power infrastructure here was "severe.". As severe weather or blizzards threaten, this database scrapes power outage information from more than 1,000 companies nationwide. He drove in the opposite direction of the storm. It damaged multiple vehicles and structures and sent pieces of. In the meantime, stay safe and continue to report your damages through 911, the Selma mayors office said in a statement. He said some of those could have been double reports for the same address. Severe thunderstorms rumbled through Central Alabama on Tuesday morning, touching off numerous tornado warnings, downed trees and power lines, sporadic power outages and torrential rains. YouTubes privacy policy is available here and YouTubes terms of service is available here. The roads to that neighborhood were expected to be blocked for several hours due to downed trees and powerlines, he said at the time. All rights reserved. Compare that to just 39 tornadoes when looking at the average dating back to 1970! They offered these safety reminders: Wednesday could see more severe weather. The boy's father was taken to the hospital, authorities said. Were going to continue to do that until we make sure everyone is accounted for, Cunningham said. Were ready to help with anything they need.". It seemed like it took forever to get here, she said. There was wide spread damage caused by downed trees, said Keith Barnett, director of the Elmore County EMA. Remembering the April 27, 2011, tornado super outbreak - al.com Several homes and other buildings have received "substantial" damage, she said. We just never seen this much damage, with the lives that have been lost too," Doris Shuler said. of Tornados in Montgomery, AL 2 Alex Gladden covers public safety for the Advertiser. Probability of damaging thunderstorm winds or wind gusts of 50 knots or higher within 25 miles of a point. Multiple reports of homes and other structures damaged and trees down. Brown said this tornado is the worst thing shes ever experienced. Climate change may have fueled Alabama storms, experts say, Selma woman who found children after tornado: It was a 100% God thing. Ivey said she was "heartbroken" and praying for the victims' family, the Flatwood community and those across Alabama affected by the storms. The office is asking everyone "to stay calm and stay in place until further notice. pic.twitter.com/ij01dWB0hr. Tornadoes also are believed to have caused damage in the. Forecasts are calling for strong to severe storms Wednesday afternoon and evening. The National Weather Service Office in Birmingham classified the storm as an EF-2 tornado with winds estimated at 115 miles per hour. There are reports of people trapped in homes along Autauga County Road 68 and rescue efforts are ongoing, Hill said. 2023 www.montgomeryadvertiser.com. Not reading this story on the WSFA News App? At this time, there remain 13,400 APC customers without service in central Alabama. Updated daily from May 1 through Sept. 30. Alabama tornado count stands at 12 after this week's storms For more information on the EF-Scale. Keep children and pets away from downed lines. There was one report of a rotten tree falling blocking a portion of Upper Kingston Road, said Ernie Baggett, director of the Autauga EMA. It is open as a shelter to the community. Three transmission structures had also been damaged. Douglass said that the county is working with the city, state and multiple volunteer fire departments. A tornado tore through the Flatwood community at around 3:30 a.m. Wednesday in north Montgomery County, leaving two people dead and several houses damaged throughout the area. Read more about the impact of the storm on the Flatwood community here. Holmes said the storm is moving between 45 mph and 50 mph and is moving east. Oh my God, that looks like a tornado,' and it was that quick," Thornton said. An incident command center has been activated as we continue response and assessment of the widespread property damage in east Montgomery," Reed wrote Wednesday morning. Montgomery Public Schools canceled all after-school activities Tuesday, including athletics. Despite what you may believe or have read somewhere on the Internet, many of Alabamas tornadoes do occur during the winter months. My office has already begun coordinating a federal response. There is more damage nationwide due to straight-line winds than any other cause, NWS data shows. Please monitor the weather carefully," the school district wrote in a Facebook post Thursday morning. The tornado started in Mississippi and crossed the state line into Pickens County about 2.3 miles south of Highway 82. There have been at least 54 incidents of storm damage throughout the nation Thursday.. 'Significant damage' in Montgomery neighborhood after possible tornado Authorities said the victims, a 39-year-old woman and 8-year-old boy, were mother and son. He rode out the storm in his basement and was relieved to find no damage to his house. He knew he wasn't supposed to be in his car, but he couldn't get out. The storm knocked out power for about 750 homes Wednesday morning, Reed said at a news conference. *Tornado risk is calculated from the destruction path that has occured within 30 miles of the location. The deaths and those missing were in the Old Kingston community in the central part of the county. A relief fund has been set up by the River Region United Way to help those impacted by the storms. It destroyed a cotton gin and support buildings in Milstead and caused roof and structural damage to several homes along county roads 8 and 9. The country club's roof was ripped off in the tornado. DO NOT attempt to remove tree limbs or anything else caught in power lines. NWS upgrades deadly overnight Montgomery County tornado to EF-2 It touched down near Kowaliga, crossed the lake and caused structural and roof damage to several homes in the Castaway and Tecumseh points area, mostly the result of fallen trees. 'This was my dream place': Tornado damages homes in Hale County, Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy. As of 3 p.m., he was still stuck inside his car, as volunteers worked to remove him. Montgomery tornado leaves two people dead, homes damaged That included 11,100 people in Dallas County, 10,000 people in Tallapoosa County, 4,200 people in Elmore County, 1,900 people in Montgomery County, 1,700 people in Lee County, 1,600 people in Autauga County and 360 people in Lowndes County. Kelley was grateful that the tornado did not kill or seriously injure any of her neighbors. Everythings gone downtown. The National Weather Service's Birmingham office confirmed the storm was a tornado Wednesday afternoon after surveying damage in the county. Several eye witnesses reported seeing a funnel cloud as the storm roared through. The roof is shown on the ground next to the building in the photo. Montgomery Mayor Steven Reed's office issued a statement confirming the cancellations at about 12:38 p.m. Thursday as a strong wave of storms pushed toward the area. mi.) It will automatically update every 15 minutes. Do not drive over lines or under low-hanging lines. Alabama tornado updates: Damage reported in Selma, Autauga County In 2022, Alabama experienced 92 tornados, which caused $219,000 in damages, according to the Tuscaloosa News. There are reports of homes and mobile homes destroyed and damaged in the area. There are no reports available on injuries at this time. The Palm Beach Gardens Police Department has not reported any major injuries or fatalities. An EF1 tornado touched down in east Montgomery early Wednesday morning as much of the city slept, injuring two and damaging more than 50 homes and businesses, the Montgomery County Emergency Management Agency said. The National Weather Service is sending teams to access nine separate areas. Montgomery Mayor Steven Reed posted to social media that Montgomery first responders "have engaged with our neighbors in Selma. She can be reached at agladden@gannett.com or 479-926-9570. The brief tornado tracked from County Road 88 where several trees were uprooted, uprooted a tree on County Road 61, and ended on County Road 126 where chicken houses had minor roof damage. Ivey said she is monitoring the situation with the Alabama Emergency Management Agency to determine if an expanded state of emergency is needed. Selma Mayor James Perkins told WSFA Thursday afternoon that least one person is believed trapped in a building on Broad Street and possibly one other person is missing. He said, 'Look at this, this is Alexander City. Avoid stepping in puddles and standing water after a storm as they may be touching hidden, downed power lines and be electrified. It is my prayer that all of you are safe and out of harms way, he said in a statement. Outages also were reported in Lee and Wilcox counties. But what about trying to determine where in the state tornadoes strike the most? Multiple dead, widespread damage across Alabama in tornado outbreak, Dallas County 5,500 customers (primarily affecting Selma and Orrville), Tallapoosa County 5,200 customers (primarily around Lake Martin and in the Alexander City, Dadeville areas), Elmore County 2,300 customers (primarily affecting communities of between Holtville and Elmore and those farther to the northeast to Lake Martin (Eclectic, Central, Equality). Montgomery, Montgomery County, AL Tornadoes - homefacts.com Alabama has tornado "hot spots" and overall tornado numbers - WSFA Montgomery Public Schools is canceling all after-school activities Thursday, according to a text sent to parents shortly after 12 p.m. Chilton County Schools dismissed at 11 a.m. Thursday.