March 5, 2019
BIRMINGHAM: Tornadoes devastated southeastern Alabama over the weekend killing
over 20 people. Several people are reported missing. "Hopefully that number
will continue to decrease as the day goes on," Lee County Sheriff Jay Jones
told reporters on Tuesday. The rescue and relief operations are going on in
full swing.
President Trump said he will visit Alabama on Friday. "It's a tragic situation
but a lot of work is getting done" in tackling the storm damage, he said.
Of 23 people who died four were children. Seven were members of one family.
Over 70 people have been hospitalised with injuries caused by the tornadoes,
as on Sunday. Some have been admitted at the University hospital at Birmingham
and some others at East Alabama Medical Center.
The names of the 23 victims in Lee County have been officially released.
Photos don’t really seem to tell the whole story of the EF-4 tornado that ripped
through Lee County, Alabama, a victim tweeted.
People were thrown on top of each other. And everything was crashing, flying,
eyewitnesses said.
Some apartments were also reported destroyed across border in Georgia.
Tornadoes swept through a km wide of track several miles in Alabama. There
were mangled masses of cars strewn around. The twisters mainly hit Lee County
at a speed of 275 kmph. Buildings were reduced to rubble in southeastern Alabama
and nearby areas of Georgia. Some tornadoes travelled for 70 miles.
