Flooding expected to hit northern Alabama

Unseasonably warm weather this week helped stimulate the high winds, tornadoes and torrential precipitation that by Saturday had left at least 17 people dead and dozens of families homeless.

Ranager Tyler and his son waded into flood water Christmas night and used rope to pull an 11-year-old boy out after his family’s auto was swept away near Pinson, about 15 miles northeast of Birmingham.

On Saturday, the US National Weather Service has issued a tornado warning for 10 US states.

Widespread flooding has also been reported in the Birmingham area with over 7 inches of rain in northwestern Alabama and up to 6 inches in northeastern Alabama.

The beginning of the extreme weather started on Wednesday as about 25 tornadoes were reported in the southern storm system; approximately 20 of those occurred on Wednesday followed by one on Thursday and three on Friday.

Flynn said, “Until they know for sure where those folks are, they’re going to keep looking, because we’ve had in some cases houses leveled, and they’re just not there anymore”.

Edwards said several houses were damaged, trees were toppled and power was knocked out in the area, but he could provide no further information. The weather service said that flooding would be experienced in southern Huntsville, Decatur, Madison, Hartselle, Muscle Shoals, Russellville, Sheffield, Tuscumbia, Moulton and Red Bay.

The tornado devastated 403 homes in seven countries in Mississippi, Greg Flynn of the state’s Emergency Management Agency told Reuters.

As the couple surveyed the damage Thursday, broken glass and mud covered most of their home’s interior.

Chicago police say an officer responding to a domestic disturbance shot and killed two people. ‘By issuing a State of Emergency, I have directed all state agencies to take necessary actions to be prepared to respond to the anticipated flooding across Alabama.

More flooding is expected in parts of northern Alabama, and residents have been warned against driving in certain areas. The National Weather Service rated two rivers in the state as “major” flooding warnings late Friday evening while a “moderate” warning was given to two others and numerous more rated as “minor”. Authorities are still searching for a 22-year-old man who was in the vehicle with the boy.

Elsewhere in the region, where the weather had calmed, dozens of people faced Christmas having lost their homes and possessions.

Perkins’ neighbors weren’t as fortunate.

Peak tornado season in the South is in the spring, but such storms can happen at any time. Past year at this time, tornadoes killed five people in MS and injured dozens.

Barbara Perkins was told Thursday by an insurance agent that her storm-damaged home in Falkner, Mississippi, was a complete loss. But Perkins – who survived hunkered down inside a closet with her husband – said she was happy just to be alive.

Unseasonably warm temperatures across the southeastern USA this week spawned severe weather blamed for deaths in Mississippi, Alabama and Arkansas.