Christmas weather storm updates: 6 deaths,40+homes damaged with "numerous injuries !!!

[link to www.youtube.com]

Last Edited by Luisport on 12/26/2012 03:00 PM

Government St. business employee witnessed twister

Updated: Wednesday, 26 Dec 2012, 1:00 PM CST
Published : Wednesday, 26 Dec 2012, 12:40 PM CST
Candace Murphy



MOBILE, Ala. (WALA) - “I’ve never been in a war zone but I’m sure that’s what it looks like,” Josh Holman said.

Holman was inside the Walgreens on Government St. at the loop in Mobile when a tornado struck the area on Christmas Day.

The storm wreaked havoc throughout the Midtown area and outside the Walgreens that Holman was inside shows the wind moving vehicles.

“I was on the phone with my brother-in-law trying to get an update from him exactly when it hit,” Holman said.

“I was in the stock room, and transformers were popping out here and the lights were turning green outside from all the transformers popping,” he said, comparing the sound to “a washing machine full of rocks.”

Holman said the twister moved across the pharmacy’s parking lot from a nearby Autozone and shows vehicles’ windows being blown out as they are blown away by the storm.

“It was pretty intense,” he said.

Holman said the parking lot was littered with tin, glass and other debris lifted from buildings around the area.

Holman said, “I was just thankful I was alive because if it had been a hundred yards the other way it would have ripped through the middle of the store.”

Wednesday, Holman said it’s business as usual at Walgreens. There was some clean-up that morning.

“Just had the parking lot picked up trying to clean up and get things straightened out. Make it look like nothing happened and going about our business,” He said.

“Normal hours 24/7; that’s what we do."
[link to www.fox10tv.com]

Must-see video of the Mobile tornado from a local Walgreens. [link to www.fox10tv.com]

Breaking News Storm‏@breakingstorm

New York Governor Cuomo announces activation of the State Emergency Operations Center to monitor the storm and emergency needs - @YNNAlbany

(CNN) -- A white Christmas is rare for Little Rock, Arkansas, but a powerful winter storm took it to a new level: The 9 inches that fell broke a December 25 snowfall record that stood for 86 years.

The storm systems that brought snow to the Midwest and tornadoes to the South continued to move eastward Wednesday, threatening the Carolinas and inland New England.

Four tornadoes have been confirmed so far following yesterday's tornado outbreak across the South. Two have been rated EF1s, including the wedge tornado we watched pass through Mobile, Alabama, and two have been rated EF2s, both of which occurred in Louisiana.

Two EF-3 tornadoes confirmed from Christmas Day; heavy snows hit 19 states
Posted by: Dr. Jeff Masters, 04:04 PM GMT em 27 de Dezembro de 2012

Winter Storm Euclid continues its U.S. tour today, and is pounding New England with heavy snows, high winds, and coastal flooding. The impressive storm is highly likely to set a record for most tornadoes spawned on Christmas Day, as 11 tornadoes have been confirmed, and there are at least 14 other suspected tornadoes that occurred. The most tornadoes ever recorded on Christmas Day was twelve, back in 1969. The storm spawned an additional confirmed tornado on December 26 in North Carolina. No more tornadoes are expected today.

Euclid has dumped more than six inches of snow in 19 states--Arkansas, Indiana, Illinois, Missouri, Oklahoma, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, Ohio, West Virginia, Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Vermont, Maine, and Texas. According to the latest NWS Storm Summary, the greatest snowfall so far has been at Albion, Illinois, where 18.3" has fallen. This will likely be exceeded in Maine, where up to two feet of snow is expected before the storm ends on Friday. Fortunately, the tornadoes from the storm are not being blamed for any deaths, though strong thunderstorm winds killed two people on Christmas Day due to falling trees. At least two of the Christmas Day tornadoes were rated EF-3. The EF-3 that hit Pennington, in Southeast Texas, completely destroyed a feed store and a restaurant, and had winds up to 150 mph. The other EF-3 hit McNeil, Mississippi, and was rated a weak EF-3 with winds of 140 mph. The tornado cut a path 24 miles long, injured 8 people, and damaged or destroyed 46 homes. Only four other EF-3 tornadoes have been recorded on Christmas Day since 1950, according to the Tornado History Project. The latest in the year an EF-3 tornado has touched down is December 31. This occurred just two years ago, in 2010, when five EF-3 tornadoes raked Arkansas, Missouri, and Illinois.

Powerful southwest winds from the storm created a significant storm surge of 5 - 6 feet which caused moderate coastal flooding this morning at Sandy Hook, NJ and King's Point, NY. The storm surge in New York City at Battery Park reached 5.9 feet, but occurred near low tide, so only minor flooding was reported. Some peak wind gusts from the storm:

66 mph at Tuckerton Shores, NJ
64 mph at Dover AFB, Delaware
64 mph at Boone, NC
60 mph at Eatons Neck, NJ
[link to www.wunderground.com]

Breaking News Storm‏@breakingstorm

US winter storm blamed for 15 deaths; Northeast largely spared from severe impact other states had - @AP [link to apne.ws]

Breaking News Storm‏@breakingstorm

US winter storm blamed for 15 deaths; Northeast largely spared from severe impact other states had - @AP [link to apne.ws]