The Latest: Officials say at least 9 twisters struck Alabama

Published January 24, 2017

The Latest on deadly storms that struck the South (all times local):

12:05 p.m.

The National Weather Service says at least nine tornadoes struck Alabama over the weekend.

The agency says the strongest twister confirmed so far in the state was an EF-2 that hit Choctaw County on Saturday with winds of up to 120 mph. That storm injured four people and destroyed four homes in western Alabama.

The weather service says other tornadoes touched down in Marengo, Barbour, Pike, Lee, Bullock and Tuscaloosa counties. Some of the storms caused damage in more than one county: Lee County had damage from three twisters over two days.

Teams are still out looking at damage, so the totals could change.

The storms were part of a system that spawned dozens of twisters across the region, killing 20 people in Georgia, Florida and Mississippi.

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3:40 a.m.

Survivors of deadly storms that swept the South are giving harrowing accounts of seeing death and destruction.

Authorities say at least 20 people perished in a midwinter outbreak of tornadoes and thunderstorms Saturday and Sunday. Georgia alone accounted for 15 of those deaths.

Devocheo Williams says a funnel cloud looking like "a ball of fire" struck the Sunshine Acres mobile home park in rural Cook County on Sunday. He says "the whole trailer park was gone in 15 seconds" and that he passed bodies while aiding survivors.

In the city of Albany, Georgia, Anthony Mitchell and his family cowered in their mobile home when a tornado hit Sunday. He says "windows exploded" and the trailer started to lift off the ground — until a tree fell and pinned their home down. Savannah, Georgia, contributed to this report.

URL

https://www.foxnews.com/us/the-latest-officials-say-at-least-9-twisters-struck-alabama