Death Toll Rises To 23 In Aftermath Of Violent Tornadoes In Alabama

As Ashley told you last night, violent tornadoes ripped through Lee County, Alabama. We were told there were multiple fatalities but didn’t have too many details.

It’s as bad as we feared.

At least 23 people are dead, including children.

The trail of destruction from the Sunday afternoon twister was at least half a mile wide and overwhelmed rural Lee County’s coroner’s office, forcing it to call in help from the state.

“The devastation is incredible,” Sheriff Jay Jones said.

Drones flying overheard equipped with heat-seeking devices had scanned the area for survivors, but the dangerous conditions halted the search late Sunday, Jones said. Rescuers planned to resume the search at daylight Monday.

At least 23 people, some of them children, died after a tornado swept through Lee County, Alabama, on Sunday, and the death toll may rise as rescuers searched through the rubble of destroyed homes, authorities said. https://t.co/i4di0NWM1o pic.twitter.com/9snPUBzSkq

— NBC News (@NBCNews) March 4, 2019

Breaking: Video captures major tornado damage in Lee County, Alabama. (Via Jonathan Hickman) pic.twitter.com/VitHRA4byt

— PM Breaking News (@PMBreakingNews) March 3, 2019

JUST IN: The death toll has now increased to 23 people killed by a possible tornado in Lee County, Alabama, on Sunday.https://t.co/fzH4wCp3Y0 pic.twitter.com/6Miw2hFjkL

— CBS News (@CBSNews) March 4, 2019

“I cannot recall, at least in the last 50 years, and longer than that, a situation where we have had this type, this loss of life that we experienced today,” said the sheriff of Lee County, Alabama, of the possible tornado that hit the area. https://t.co/fzH4wCp3Y0 pic.twitter.com/uJql6MaLD6

— CBS News (@CBSNews) March 4, 2019

Large tornado Sunday afternoon in Lee County, Alabama. Fatalities were reported. Video from @ScottPeakeWX pic.twitter.com/6pw8h6qXAt

— SevereStudios (@severestudios) March 3, 2019

Absolutely devastating.