Powerful storms slam South; at least 6 killed in Alabama

A giant swirling storm system billowing across the South killed at least six people Thursday in central Alabama authorities said and spawned a tornado that shredded the walls of homes toppled roofs and uprooted trees in SelmaErnie Baggett the emergency management director in Autauga County Alabama told The Associated Press he could confirm six fatalities were scattered across multiple homes in the Old Kingston community Baggett said mobile homes and conventional homes were both damagedIt seems to have been a couple of different houses where people were at home Baggett said He said at least 12 people were injured severely enough to be taken to hospitals by emergency responders Baggett said he didnt know the extent of their injuriesAutauga County Alabama is 66 kilometers northeast of Selma Officials estimate that 40 to 50 homes were damaged or destroyed by storms that cut a strip across the county Baggett said He said crews were focused Thursday evening on cutting through downed trees to look for people who may be injuredSearch and rescue is really more whats going on right now Baggett said In Selma a city etched in the history of the civil rights movement brick buildings collapsed cars were on their side and traffic poles were strewn about in the downtown area Plumes of thick black smoke rose over the city from a fire burning It was not immediately known whether the storm caused the blazeA few blocks past the citys famed Edmund Pettus Bridge an enduring symbol of the voting rights movement buildings were crumpled by the storm and trees blocked roadways Selma Mayor James Perkins said that no fatalities have been reported at this time but first responders are continuing to assess the damagePeople have been injured but no fatalities Perkins said We have a lot of downed power lines There is a lot of danger on the streets A city curfew is being put into place the mayor addedThe large and extremely dangerous tornado caused damage as it moved through the historic city the National Weather Service said There were confirmed reports of tree and structural damage in Selma and reports of damage in other counties the agency saidNationwide there were 33 separate tornado reports Thursday from the National Weather Service as of Thursday evening with a handful of tornado warnings still in effect in Georgia South Carolina and North Carolina However the reports were not yet confirmed and some of them could later be classified as wind damage after assessments are done in coming daysIn Alabama there is damage all over Selma former state Senator Hank Sanders said he has been told A tornado has definitely damaged Selma In fact it hit our house but not headon It blew out windows in the bedroom and in the living room It is raining through the roof in the kitchen Sanders saidSelma a city of about 18000 residents is about 80 kilometers west of the Alabama capital city of Montgomery Selma was a flashpoint of the civil rights movement Alabama state troopers viciously attacked Black people advocating for voting rights as they marched across the Edmund Pettus Bridge on March 7 1965 Among those beaten by law enforcement officers was John Lewis whose skull was fractured He went on to a long and distinguished career as a US congressmanAfter the tornado passed Krishun Moore emerged from her home to the sound of children crying and screaming She and her mother encouraged the kids to keep screaming until they found the two of them on top of the roof of a damaged apartment She estimated the kids were about one and four years old Both of them are OK she said through Facebook messengerMalesha McVay drove parallel to the tornado with her family She said it got less than a mile from her home before suddenly turning We stopped and we prayed We followed it and prayed she said It was a 100 per cent God thing that it turned right before it hit my houseShe took video of the giant twister which would turn black as it swept away home after home It would hit a house and black smoke would swirl up she said It was very terrifyingThe weather service had issued a tornado emergency for several counties just north of the capital city of Montgomery as the same storm system moved eastward This is a lifethreatening situation Take shelter immediately the weather service said of the reported tornadoThere were multiple tornado warnings issued Thursday in Alabama Mississippi and Tennessee as the storm system moved through the region More than 50000 customers were without power in Alabama according to PowerOutageus which tracks outages nationwideIn Georgia more than 100000 customers were without electricity just before sunset Thursday as the storm system carved a path across a tier of counties just south of Atlanta according to PowerOutageusThe storm hit in Griffin south of Atlanta with winds damaging a shopping area local news outlets reported A Hobby Lobby store partially lost its roof and at least one car was flipped in the parking lot of a nearby WalmartDamage was also reported west of downtown Atlanta in Douglas County and Cobb County with Cobb County government posting a damage report showing a crumbled cinder block wall at a warehouse in suburban AustellIn Kentucky the National Weather Service in Louisville confirmed that an EF1 tornado struck Mercer County and said crews were surveying damage in a handful of other counties There were reports of downed trees power outages and other scattered damage from storms that moved through the stateThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever