10 FATALITIES AFTER TORNADO OUTBREAK; ALL CLEAR FOR LOCAL AREA… March 3, 2019 will go down as a “red letter day” as multiple significant tornadoes happened across the Deep South. The worst two tornadoes thus far have happened in Lee County, Alabama, south of Auburn. These two tornadoes caused at least 10 deaths with many more injuries. My heart aches to have to report that some of the deaths involved were children. We’ve also had numerous reports of trees down across south Alabama and northwest Florida. Here’s what we know so far…
RISK IS NOW OVER… The good news is the main line of storms has passed into South Georgia and the Florida Panhandle, meaning the severe weather risk has ended for all of Alabama and northwest Florida. ALL CLEAR. We can all rest easier tonight.
TORNADOES IN WASHINGTON COUNTY… Two tornadoes happened in west Alabama’s Washington County earlier today. Significant structural damage happened to a church and one mobile home on Fairfield Road near Sims Chapel. Another tornado happened near Highway 17 just south of Chatom. RedZone Weather provided uninterrupted live video coverage for both of these tornado warnings.
TREES DOWN NORTH OF ATMORE… Several trees were blown down along Jack Springs Road north of Atmore. Storm damage has also been reported at Freemanville.
MORE TREES DOWN… Trees also were downed at Gainestown in southern Clarke County, northeast of Greenville in Butler County, and in Okaloosa and Walton counties in northwest Florida.
MULTIPLE LARGE TORNADOES IN LEE COUNTY… The headline tornadoes that today will be remembered for are TWO distinct tornadoes that happened in the exact same areas of Lee County, AL near Smiths, Beauregard, and Smiths Station. Ten people are confirmed to have been killed in the large, violent tornadoes with many more injuries being reported. Structural damage is extensive in those areas. First responders continue to assess the situation and ask that folks remain out of the way, aka no “sight seeing!”
QUIET WEATHER PATTERN FOR MONDAY AND TUESDAY… We finally get a break from the rain and storms early this week as cool, dry, stable air is now filtering in. Overnight lows by Monday morning will be around 39-41° in most spots. Highs on Monday and Tuesday will peak in the upper-50s with lots of sunshine.
My next update will be posted by Monday morning at 7:15AM. See you then!