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14-year-old tornado victim identified; tornado damage still being assessed in Jefferson County

A late-night tornado damaged the towns of Fultondale and Center Point in Jefferson County, AL, killing one person and injuring at least 28 others.

FULTONDALE, Ala. — A tornado touched down in the Fultondale and Center Point areas of Jefferson County, AL late Monday, killing at least one person and injuring many more.

A preliminary report from the National Weather Service in Birmingham puts the storm at a High-End-EF2.

A teenager huddling in his basement was killed and several of his family members were critically injured when a tornado blew a tree onto their home and it collapsed on top of them, police said Tuesday. At least 28 other people were injured as the twister carved a 10-mile path of destruction north of Birmingham. 

The teen has been identified by the Jefferson County Coroner as Elliot Hernandez, a 9th grader at Fultondale High School.

The tornado caused damage from Fultondale to Center Point, striking an area of Alabama that was severely harmed by a much larger tornado a decade ago.    

This time, piles of furniture, appliances and tree limbs were strewn about and vehicles ended up in awkward positions, as if a child had flung his collection of Matchbox cars into the air. One car landed upside down against some tree branches on a large pile of debris.

Governor Ivey reached out to Fultondale Mayor Larry Holcomb and Center Point Mayor Bobby Scott following last night’s severe weather and says, “I have reached out to Fultondale Mayor Holcomb and Center Point Mayor Scott and have pledged to them any support or resources that are available. The search and rescue efforts continue today, and we certainly give our thanks to those folks as they carry out their mission. To the Alabamians gravely affected by this round of severe weather, I am with you. We will get through this.” 

Some people came to the affected area to offer their support.

"This morning, 6:30, 7 o'clock when we had our discussion, it wasn't about putting a plan together, it wasn't about getting a crew together, it was about coming out here, touching and putting our finger on the pulse of people's pain," said Kris Erskin, one of the people who came to help. "People are hurting, it's not about ethnicity, it's not about race, what better in this country for people to see us come all together in a crisis."

A representative of Jefferson County Education gave an update on Fultondale High School.

Jefferson County, Alabama tornado update:

Jefferson County shared on social media in the early morning hours: We have the following update on roads: Sunhill Rd has power lines down just past Jeff State, Old Springville Rd. is closed at Garrison Valley Lane, Mohawk Drive is closed, and Republic Rd in Fultondale is closed due to trees down and power lines."

Several schools in the area are closed due to the storm.

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