EF1 tornado in Walker County, Alabama

National Weather Service meteorologists surveyed the damage in northwest Walker County and have determined that the damage was due to an EF-1 tornado, with maximum winds of 86 mph. The tornado touched down approximately 3/4 of a mile southwest of Dogtown Road, near Seamore Mountain, in the Mill Creek watershed. The tornado tracked northeast and crossed Dogtown Road where it uprooted several trees. The tornado continued northeast and crossed Highway 78 and Ritter Road, where the most significant damage occurred. Dozens of trees were uprooted and one single family home had portions of its roof and roof decking removed. The tornado continued northeast and crossed Nix Road, Nauvoo Road, Jagger Road, Johnson Road, and Slick Lizzard Road. Some minor structural damage was observed along these roads along with tree damage. The tornado finally lifted northeast of Slick Lizzard Road before it crossed Highway 5. This damage could not be linked to the tornado in southern Winston County at Poplar Springs.

Severe thunderstorms ahead of and along a cold front moved across Central Alabama on Thursday, April 11th. Storms along the cold front formed into a quasi-linear convective system, causing wind damage and producing seven tornadoes across the area. Ahead of the line, strong daytime heating and increasing instabilities coupled with strong diffluence aloft created prime conditions for discrete thunderstorms to form. These storms caused wind damage across portions of northeast Central Alabama during the late afternoon.