No Injuries After Wednesday Storms Cause Damage, Outages In Northport

NORTHPORT, AL — No injuries have been reported Thursday morning following a strong line of storms moving over west Alabama Wednesday night that caused damage to trees and homes in Northport, particularly on 68th Avenue near Flatwoods Elementary.

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Power is still out for many residents and, while some small structures and mobile homes suffered minor damage, the most visible impacts came to trees along the street. The sound of chainsaws could be heard Thursday morning, as Northport Public Works crews cleared debris and fallen trees.

Ginger Green is a resident of the 3000 block of 68th Avenue, where she lives with her family, and told Patch the storm seemed to intensify in a matter of moments. The eastern end of the family's home served as a kind of indicator for just how strong the winds were, with scraps of green foliage and debris speckled across the white vinyl.

"Last night being in it, I was expecting so much worse [Thursday morning]," she said of the aftermath once the sun came up. "Then when I woke up this morning, we are able to get a better look. It was just slinging stuff across my yard, but we were lucky."

Green said she was talking to her husband in the mobile home's living room, when out of nowhere she heard a "loud howling noise" — like the rumbling of truck motor that got louder and louder.

She knew the sound, because she had heard it once before.

"We lost our house in Alberta City [during the 2011 tornado], so when I heard it coming through, I was like 'oh my God, it's a tornado' and just told everybody to run," she said. "My mother is older and couldn't move as fast, so she had to get down on the floor on the other side of the bed because the windows started buckling with the wind. My oldest son, he took off running and asked where we should go, and I said 'Baby, we're in a trailer. We can't go anywhere.'"

Northport City Council President Jeff Hogg represents District 5, which includes the Flatwoods community. He told Patch Thursday morning he has been closely assessing the damage and working to make sure residents are cared for.

"As always, myself, my family, and the entire district stands ready to assist if and when we are needed," he told Patch. "I have already made contact with some service groups. My thoughts and prayers are with each family affected by the storm."

According to outage numbers posted at 9 a.m. by Alabama Power, approximately 122 customers are without power in Flatwoods area. The estimated repair time 10 a.m.

Here's a look at some of what I saw Thursday morning on 68th Avenue.

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