Roofs ripped from homes in Howardtown area of Washington County by tornado

HOWARDTOWN, Ala. (WALA) - Folks in Howardtown, near Tibbie, AL were counting their blessings after a suspected tornado tore through the Washington County community early Wednesday morning, November 30, 2022. Trees were snapped and roofs blown from homes.

“I’m just thankful and blessed,” said Rose Parnell. “God had his hand on me.”

Parnell wasn’t alone in her feelings. Several homes on Leo Road and Boyd Willie Parnell Road suffered extensive damage, at least one moved from its foundation. Roofs were ripped off and scattered across the neighborhood. This allowed the wind and rain to destroy the inside of the homes.

Parnell only had time to grab her dog, Chip and jump into a bathtub in a hallway bathroom. She said it only took a few moments for the winds to tear her roof off. After seeing the damage done, she was thankful to be alive.

“About the time I got in the tub…it…all chaos started,” Parnell recalled. “The wind was blowing. I could hear the roof going. It was rain…you know, rain was coming in.”

Up the street, Anthony Timothy was woken from his sleep by an alert on his phone. He didn’t even have time to get dressed before the winds started howling.

“Before I could even get my clothes on, my house went to moving,” said Anthony Timothy. “It just started shifting real slow. Kind of like surfing because it went to moving. Luckily, it didn’t move no farther than it did.”

While that was going on, just around the corner on Leo Road, Brantley Coaker had just been woken by his parents and took shelter as his roof came off over his head. Wind and water inundated the house. Pieces of his roof scattered in the wind. He felt fortunate to be okay.

“Just knowing that nobody was hurt, that we all made it out okay. This kind of stuff can be replaced. A life can’t,” said Coaker.

Public safety officials in Washington County said between the damage in Fruitdale and the Tibbie – Howardtown area, no serious injuries were reported.

Officials from the National Weather Service were in the area late Wednesday aftrnoon inspecting the damage.

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