NEW ORLEANS — Authorities in Alabama say a suspected tornado spurred by Tropical Storm Claudette demolished or badly damaged at least 50 homes in a small town just north of the Florida border.
Sheriff Heath Jackson in Escambia County said a suspected tornado “pretty much leveled” a mobile home park, toppled trees onto houses and ripped the roof off of a high school gym. Most of the damage was done in or near the towns of Brewton and East Brewton, about 48 miles north of Pensacola, Florida.
“It kind of affected everybody,” Jackson said. “But with those mobile homes being built so close together it can take a toll on them a lot more than it can on houses that are spread apart.”
There were no immediate reports of serious injuries or deaths. Photos of the Brewton area shared on Facebook show toppled trees, including one that landed on a house, as well a long stretch of debris that a local news outlet said was from a badly damaged trailer park.
Damage from the storm was also felt in north Florida, where winds — in some cases reaching 85 mph — caused an 18-wheeler to flip on its side.
The National Hurricane Center declared Claudette organized enough to qualify as a named storm at 4 a.m. Saturday, well after the storm’s center of circulation had come ashore southwest of New Orleans. By Saturday night, Claudette was a tropical depression located 45 miles west-northwest of Montgomery, Alabama, with sustained winds of 30 mph. It was moving northeast at 14 mph. Most of the heavy weather was happening far to the north and east of the center.
The storm dumped flooding rains north of Lake Pontchartrain in Louisiana and along the Mississippi coast, inundating streets and, in some areas, pushing water into homes. Later, the storm was drenching the Florida Panhandle and, well inland, a broad expanse of Alabama. The National Weather Service warned of possible tornadoes in north Florida and south Alabama.
Parts of inland Mississippi and Georgia were getting heavy rain from Claudette as well. And even though the storm was weakening, the National Hurricane Center issued a tropical storm watch for parts of the North Carolina coast, which could feel the effects by Sunday night. The storm was forecast to cross into the Atlantic Ocean on Monday, and regain tropical storm strength over open water Tuesday.
Residents of Pace, Florida, called 911 to report a possible twister that tore the roofs off two homes and damaged at least three others.
“Nobody’s hurt,” said Sarah Whitfield, spokesperson for Santa Rosa County, Fla. “We’re just thankful it happened after sunrise,” not overnight as people slept.
An 18-wheeler hit several utility poles and flipped on its side during the storm early Saturday. Debris from the accident, including a collapsed utility pole, turned into projectiles and struck a passing SUV, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.