Stormy weather returns to county

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Limestone County District 4 Commissioner Bill Daws talks with Sugar Creek Estates homeowner Amelia Brooks, above, after a sudden Thursday afternoon windstorm blew down trees on her carport. News Courier/Kim Rynders

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July 30, 2010

Churning winds down trees along Elk River

By Karen Middleton karen@athensnews-courier.com The News Courier Fri Jul 30, 2010, 02:00 AM CDT

— Amelia Brooks was alone in her Sugar Creek Estates home Thursday when she heard tin crumbling and scrambled for the basement.

“I don’t remember hearing trees falling, I don’t remember the wind, it was just very quick,” said Brooks late Thursday afternoon as Commission District 4 workers and equipment cleared trees from her road so Athens Utilities could reconnect power. “By the time I got to the bottom of the basement stairs, it was over with.”

A tree or trees fell across her and her husband, Rickey’s, carport and truck. However, a motorcycle and boat parked under the carport escaped damage.

District 4 Commissioner Bill Daws said that some Sugar Creek residents in this West Limestone neighborhood bordering the Elk River believe a tornado spawned by a line of thunderstorms accompanied by strong winds and lightning, caused the damage.

Evidence of trees broken off and blown over from two directions led observers to believe there was some rotation to the winds.

Downed trees clogged the road and broken power lines sagged and dragged the ground.

Three years ago a similar summer storm struck suddenly and without warning and blew off the corner of the Brookses’ home.

They say they feel lucky the damage wasn’t anymore severe than it was, although the winds did take the top off their pontoon boat and damaged their dock.

Up the road, Johnny Hannah, who said he just closed on the purchase of an 80-foot lot bordering the river on Tuesday, hit for his truck when the thunder and lightning became to severe.

Hannah said he came to begin clearing his lot and heard the rumblings of thunder and saw flashes of lightning getting ever closer.

“It got so bad that I thought it might be dangerous and went to my truck,” said Hannah. “Then came a big wind off the water. It just swooped in here.”

Hannah said he was afraid when trees began to fall that they would fall on his truck.

“There was really no loud sound,” he said. “I just saw the trees falling.”

A Limestone County Emergency Management Agency spokesman said that the only reports of damage his office received was that from West Limestone and Sugar Creek Estates.

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