Alabaster Tornado - April 19, 2009

Alabaster Tornado - Shelby County
April 19, 2009

Rating: (Click for EF Scale)	EF-0
Estimated Maximum Wind:	60-65 mph
Injuries/Fatalities:	None
Damage Path Length:	3.30miles
Maximum Path Width:	100 yards
Approximate Start Point/Time:	33.2035/-86.8627 at 653 pm
Approximate End Point/Time:	33.2315/-86.8165 at 658 pm

National Weather Service personnel and several citizens witnessed a tornado touch down in Alabaster. The tornado has been rated an EF-0 on the Enhanced Fujita Scale. Winds were estimated around 70 mph and these winds affected a very small area. Most areas along the path experienced winds much less than 60 mph and very little damage.

Based on a number of eyewitness accounts and a number of photographs submitted to the NWS, another tornado has been documented in Alabaster. The tornado was weak and poorly organized, rating only an EF-0 with winds of 60 to 65 mph. The tornado a first touched down in the Maylene area, with a few trees topped out in the area. The tornado tracked northeastward with a very distinct rotating wall cloud, with an eyewitness reporting that it tore a few shingles off the roof of a house just southeast of Thompson High School. From there, it continued across Highway 119 near Thompson Intermediate School, with a Sheriff's Deputy reporting multiple funnels on or near the ground as it crossed over higher terrain. A NWS employee spotted the tornado as it crossed over the higher terrain just to the WNW of the Promenade in Alabaster, and watched as it lifted off the ground.