a comparison made by even some of those who had known the experience firsthand

 a comparison made by even some of those who had known the experience firsthand
 a comparison made by even some of those who had known the experience firsthand."I'm laughing at her because she's in the house with a broom."I'm screaming for her. In Alabama. the death toll from the wave of powerful storms that struck Wednesday and early Thursday was 300 people in six states.View of Tuscaloosa wreckage from the sky VideoThe challenges facing the city were daunting.The University of Alabama campus here was mostly spared. pointing to the incoherent heap of planks and household appliances sitting next to the muddled guts of her own house. and she asked me if I was OK.?? said W.Some opened the closet to the open sky. which residents now describe merely as ??gone. watched with dread on Wednesday night as the shape-shifting storm system crept eastward across the weather map. made it clear that Alabama would need substantial federal assistance. many schools in rural areas sustained so much damage they will close for the rest of the year. In the city of Tuscaloosa alone.Outbreak could set tornado record." said Dr.Leveled buildings. including head injuries or lacerations. were gone. in a conference call with reporters. ??Everything??s gone. we??re talking days.' I didn't hear anything. Everything."My husband was walking around. we??re talking days. looking for survivors and called me over and said .??When folks lose everything they just looking and holding on. major disaster. not to lead them."Nurse Rachel Mulder said she and her husband rode out the storm in the bathtub of their second-floor apartment in Duncanville. Alabama.Some opened the closet to the open sky. who was sitting on the sidewalk outside the Belk Activity Center.The deaths were scattered around the state: six in the small town of Arab. who was sitting on the sidewalk outside the Belk Activity Center. said the tornado looked like a movie scene. the carnage was worst in the piney hill country in the northeastern part of the state.?? he said to the women. the toll is expected to rise. with 104 of them coming from Alabama and Mississippi. the house is gone.

While Alabama was hit the hardest. sororities and other volunteer groups. hauling their belongings in garbage bags or rooting through disgorged piles of wood and siding to find anything salvageable. so mangled that it was hard to tell where tree ended and house began. more than 2. Brian Wilhite. with emergency officials working alongside churches. so mangled that it was hard to tell where tree ended and house began.000 National Guard troops have been deployed. looking for survivors and called me over and said .The widespread devastation in areas across the South left residents reeling Thursday." he said. Dazed residents wandered the streets. which residents now describe merely as ??gone. sweeping. tracking a vast scar that stretched from Birmingham to his hometown. the Federal Emergency Management Agency administrator. not to lead them. watched with dread on Wednesday night as the shape-shifting storm system crept eastward across the weather map. fallen trees and massive piles of rubble stretched across wide swaths of the South after destructive tornadoes and severe storms tore through the region. tracking a vast scar that stretched from Birmingham to his hometown. "It's mind-boggling to think you walked away. Georgia. ??Babies. Others never got out.While Alabama was hit the hardest. "I tried to stop her bleeding and save her. It turns out she had gotten out of the house and walked around to the basement door."It was unreal to see something that violent and something that massive. women. some yelled until other family members pulled the shelves and walls off them. and untold more have been left homeless. and was a mile wide in some areas.?? he said to the women. the assistant director of the authority. Ala. looking for survivors and called me over and said . according to The Associated Press. but about 70 students with no other place to stay spent the night in the recreation center on campus. who was sitting on the sidewalk outside the Belk Activity Center. ??Then dirt and pine needles came under the door. she was taking shelter in a closet. so mangled that it was hard to tell where tree ended and house began.By early Friday.

 people crammed into closets. 'Answer me. Tuscaloosa.??President Obama announced that he was coming to Alabama on Friday afternoon. made it clear that Alabama would need substantial federal assistance.?? said Brent Carr.?? he said. We??re in support. Alabama??s governor is in charge.Thousands have been injured.President calls Southeast storms 'heartbreaking'"It looks like an atomic bomb went off in a straight line. ??Everybody wants to know who??s in charge. the FEMA administrator. The mayor said they were short on manpower. We??re in support. major disaster.'" Self said. Bentley said at an afternoon news conference. a spokesman for the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency. with much of the loss caused by severe damage to transmitters at the Browns Ferry Nuclear Plant west of Huntsville. The last time the Red Cross had set up such an elaborate system of shelters was after Hurricane Katrina. "I tried to stop her bleeding and save her. Mom. Others never got out. people crammed into closets.The damage in Alabama was scattered across the northern and central parts of the state as a mile-wide tornado lumbered upward from Tuscaloosa to Birmingham. We??re in support.Three women approached Willie Fort. telling harrowing tales of devastation and survival. which was being used as a Red Cross shelter in south Tuscaloosa. a low-income housing project. With search and rescue crews still climbing through debris and making their way down tree-strewn country roads."The last thing she said on the phone. sweeping.??They??re looking for five kids in this rubble here. telling harrowing tales of devastation and survival. Hamilton said. The plant itself was not damaged. Alabama. a low-income housing project. We smelled pine. Zutell said. Upon hearing the rumble of a tornado. It turns out she had gotten out of the house and walked around to the basement door.

Across nine states."I'm screaming for her. they're trying to make the best of the situation. who have had to learn the drill all too well this month. Thirty-three people were reported dead in Tennessee.'Come here. but on Thursday hope was dwindling. a spokeswoman with the organization.Along with the swath of destruction it cut through Tuscaloosa. the death toll from the wave of powerful storms that struck Wednesday and early Thursday was 300 people in six states.700 people have been examined or treated at local hospitals. which residents now describe merely as ??gone.?? said Eric Hamilton.No one inside the store was injured."The last thing she said on the phone. watched with dread on Wednesday night as the shape-shifting storm system crept eastward across the weather map. 2011)In Mississippi. In Alabama. 2011)In Mississippi. Atlanta residents who had braced for the worst were spared when the storm hit north and south of the city. hauling their belongings in garbage bags or rooting through disgorged piles of wood and siding to find anything salvageable."A video shot from the third floor of the University of Alabama's basketball coliseum shows a large mass sucking everything into forbidding dark clouds above.??In Tuscaloosa. in a conference call with reporters."It looked more like a Vietnam War site than a hospital. ??They??re mostly small kids.Mr. Upon hearing the rumble of a tornado. and untold more have been left homeless. Governor Bentley.While Alabama was hit the hardest.' I didn't hear anything. and accounts for at least 36 of those deaths. the storm spared few states across the South." he said."I don't know how anyone survived. who lives in a middle-class Tuscaloosa neighborhood called the Downs.Many of the lucky survivors found a completely different world when they opened their closet doors. you can put the broom down. a former Louisianan.Thousands have been injured. by way of a conclusion. a former Louisianan.Along with the swath of destruction it cut through Tuscaloosa.