Large Piece of Sheet Metal Narrowly Misses Workers as Deadly Tornado Moves Through Alabama
Workers sheltered in a structure for safety as a deadly tornado passed through Decatur, Alabama, on Thursday, January 12.
Footage recorded by Dakota Chapman, an employee at SA Recycling, shows howling wind and rain outside a structure. Workers are pushed back into the building when a large piece of sheet metal smacks into the front.
Chapman told Storyful: "I was working in my sheer crane at the time, and the wind and rain started picking up heavily. Then all of a sudden, tornado sirens started going off.
“They told us to cut our machines off and take cover. When we all went into the concrete structure, I was scared. I tried to call my wife, but I had no signal. Then all of a sudden, the wind picked up more. And all I saw was the rain going sideways,” he said.
“I also saw the piece of tin picking up and coming directly toward us … If the sheet metal had been at a slightly different angle, we could’ve lost our lives. It was terrifying,” Chapman said.
Local media reported that one person was injured at a recycling plant in Decatur when the storm passed through.
Alabama Governor Kay Ivey said on Twitter that six people in Alabama were killed by storms on Thursday. Credit: Dakota Chapman via Storyful
Video transcript
[INDISTINCT CHATTER]
- Go, go, go, go, go, go, go!
[INDISTINCT SHOUTING]
- They got to put a god damn door--
- They got to put a door right there now.
[SIREN RINGING]
[INDISTINCT CHATTER]
- Be careful!
[SIREN RINGING]
[INDISTINCT CHATTER]
- Go, go, go, go, go, go, go!
[INDISTINCT SHOUTING]
- They got to put a god damn door--
- They got to put a door right there now.
[SIREN RINGING]
- Be careful!
[SIREN RINGING]
[INDISTINCT CHATTER]
