1. Historic Tornado Outbreak Hits Alabama
One Year Ago This Week
Historic Tornado Outbreak Hits Alabama
Edward Poolos
Alabama Department of Environmental Management

2. Oil Impacts on Alabama Beaches

4. ADEM serves as the lead State response agency for Alabama, entire response included 13 State Agencies
ADEM response began April 20, 2010 and continues
The State response integrates local governments as partners
Approximately 40,000 Departmental work hours expended to date. Over 30,000 of those during FY 2010.

5. April 27, 2011 The Events of that Day Environmental Emergency Response
Things Environmental Agencies should
consider when preparing for these
type events

6. Three Waves of Tornados:
Attack #1: Began at 4:01 a.m.
29 tornados touched down
Central and North Alabama
Attack #2: 11:15 a.m.
7 weak tornados
Athens, Huntsville, Decatur
Attack #3: 2:40 p.m. – 9:48 p.m.
62 tornados touched down

8. Statewide Impacts: 62 tornados touched down in Alabama
Tornados on ground for 1,206 miles
35 of Alabama’s 67 Counties affected
2 EF5 Tornados touched down, only 4
in U.S. from 2007 – 2010.
23, 553 Homes were damaged or
destroyed

9. Statewide Impacts (Cont.):
248 Fatalities Statewide
2,219 People Injured
19 Counties with Fatalities
18 Schools destroyed or severely
damaged
Over 88,000 Alabamians registered for
FEMA assistance

10. Hackleburg Tornado: EF 5, Winds up to 210 MPH
On ground for miles and 2
hours and 3 minutes
Maximum Width of a mile and a
quarter
72 Fatalities

12. Tuscaloosa Tornado: EF 4, Winds up to 190 MPH
On ground for 80.7 miles and 1
hour and 31 minutes
Maximum Width of a mile and a
half
64 Fatalities, over 1,500 injured
1,257 homes destroyed and 4,105
damaged in Tuscaloosa alone

14. Emergency Response: Dealing with Impacts of the April 27th Tornados
- ADEM is primary state agency for
ESF 10 response (Oil and Hazardous
Materials) in all emergencies

15. Everybody has a plan till they get punched in the mouth. - Mike Tyson

16. Areas of Concern Immediately After Events:
Industrial Facility Damage - housing
hazardous substances
Drinking Water and Wastewater
Facilities damage/shut downs
Underground Storage Tank Systems-
Gas Stations
Transformer Oil- PCBs
Drums
Boats (Fuel Tanks)
Poultry Farms

17. Issues Facing ADEM Directly After Events:
Communications
Gasoline
Large Area of Concern
Overwhelmed State Resources
Preparing for Debris Management

18. Village Creek WWTP. Sludge drying beds. Minimal problems with WWTP
Village Creek WWTP. Sludge drying beds. Minimal problems with WWTP. Power outages were isolated in central Alabama. North and west Alabama had more ower outages.

19. Drums in Ohatchee. Initially reported in the lake
Drums in Ohatchee. Initially reported in the lake. Leaks were plugged by local HazMat team. Contractor disposed of drums and dug up a small amount of contaminated soil.

20. TSC services in Tuscaloosa
TSC services in Tuscaloosa. No spills other than the pink material which was a biodegradable powdered pigment for soap.

21. Gas Station- Shear valves prevent spillage when dispensers are removed.

22. Lightning strike at gas station in north Alabama.

24. Transformers. Mainly Alabama Power in our area.

28. Eagle Cove Marina- Numerous house boats. Large fuel cells.

29. Warrior River. 750 gallon fuel tank on this boat. Diesel fuel.

31. Debris Management: ~10 million Cubic Yards of Debris in Alabama
Enough Debris to fill the 102,000 seat
Bryant-Denny Stadium with debris 1
mile high
Enough debris to fill 67,000
18-wheelers full – these 18 wheelers
would stretch from Mobile to Nashville
and ½ way back
90% of this Debris was removed in the
first 90 days

32. Calhoun County. Ohatchee. Willow Point area
Calhoun County. Ohatchee. Willow Point area. 2 million cubic yards of wet debris estimated.

33. Wet Debris Issues: Lake Martin 15,288 cubic yards Complete in 44 days
Neely Henry Lake
5,598 cubic yards
Complete in 38 days

34. Henry Neely

35. Lake Martin

36. Poultry Issues: ~210 chicken houses destroyed ~500 houses moderately –
severely damaged
~500 houses slight damage (tin
blown off)
~3.2 million chicken losses
Some disposed in landfill/some
on-site

38. Debris 4.7 million cubic yards so far (7-28-11) Express Oil

39. Debris- Tuscaloosa

40. Tuscaloosa EMA before and after

41. Storm track from the air. Birmingham suburb

52. “By deepening our understanding of this tragedy and its effects, we can improve our ability to prepare for and respond to a broad range of potential disasters.”
- Alabama Governor Robert Bentley

53. Things to Consider When Planning for these Type Events:
Multi-Media Trained Field Staff
Adequate ICS Trained Field Staff
Relationships within your own Agency
Resources of your Agriculture Department
Relationships with Utility Companies (Power,
Drinking Water)
Relationships with elected officials
Decisions on Debris reduction guidelines/requirements (pre-printed notification forms)
Train Staff on Sensitivity Issues Related to
Disasters

54. Things to Consider When Planning for these Type Events: (Cont.)
Be Prepared to Act Quickly Regarding
Regulations Dealing with:
Open Burning
Landfill Service Areas
Landfill Permit variances – (Working faces and Daily Volumes)
Asbestos
Back-up Plan for Staff Communication
Back-up Plan for Agency Fuel Needs