Spring storms leave trail of damage across county
Franklin County, News, Top News Stories FRONT PAGE, Z - News Main, Z - TOP HOME
 By  Ciera Hughes Published 
1:47 pm Tuesday, March 30, 2021

Spring storms leave trail of damage across county

Severe weather disrupted life in Franklin County this past week, with storms hitting Thursday and Saturday.

The storms Thursday largely missed Franklin County, with the storm splitting and hitting to the north and south. The storm Saturday brought damage across the county from straight-line winds, with several power outages.

“This is what I consider pretty typical weather for this time of year in Alabama,” said Franklin County EMA Director Mary Hallman Glass. “Typically March, April and May tend to be our months with a lot of bad weather.”

The storms Thursday prompted schools to dismiss early as a precaution but did not cause major damage.

The only reported damage from the storm Thursday was major flooding on Highway 90, which is still closed, as well as other county roads.

A tornado warning was issued around 2:30 p.m. Thursday for Franklin County, but this warning was eventually removed to only encompass Colbert and Lauderdale counties.

“The storms really split around us,” Hallman Glass said. “Pretty much all we ended up getting was a flooded road.”

Several tornados were confirmed Thursday in Central Alabama near Birmingham and Tuscaloosa, which did significant damage in some areas.

“This is why we prepare because you never know which areas will end up with bad storms,” Hallman Glass said.

The Saturday storms brought damage across the county, with lots of trees down and destruction at local sites including the Russellville Municipal Airport, the John Blackwell Sports Complex and Pinkard Funeral Home.

“We had a small number of power outages because of straight-line winds, but the majority of these were restored within one or two hours,” said a representative with Russellville Utilities. “The remainder of power outages we had remained off due to extensive damage to their home.”

Mark Stockton with Franklin Electric said approximately 675 customers lost power over the weekend. He said the first reports of power outages came in early Sunday morning, but all power had been restored by Sunday afternoon.

Hallman Glass said the worst portion of the storm in Franklin County Saturday occurred in Russellville, with the line traveling diagonally from Highway 43 and Walnut Gate Road.

Russellville Police Chief Chris Hargett said the majority of cleanup inside the city limits was done by the street department, but many groups came together to assist in any way they could.

“Everyone tries to do their best to assist each other where possible,” Hargett said. “Even though we can’t necessarily help with fallen trees, we can help them by blocking the streets to allow them to get their equipment in there.”

Hallman Glass said damage in the area is still being evaluated to determine whether a tornado developed in this portion of the storm, but she said from what she saw, she doubted any tornadic activity.

“I think we just had a lot of straight-line winds, but those can also produce a lot of damage,” Hallman Glass said.

Also on Franklin County Times
County school board adopts $52M budget
Main, News, Russellville, ...
María Camp maria.camp@franklincountytimes.com 
September 17, 2025
RUSSELLVILLE Franklin County Schools has adopted a $52 million budget for fiscal year 2026, reflecting a $2.5 million increase over last year. The bud...
Judge denies YO status for Phinizee
Main, News, Z - News Main
Bernie Delinski For the FCT 
September 17, 2025
FLORENCE — Youthful offender status was denied Tuesday for a 17-year-old charged with the death of a 13-yearold during what authorities said was a rob...
RCS passes $43.3M budget
Main, News, Russellville
María Camp maria.camp@franklincountytimes.com 
September 17, 2025
RUSSELLVILLE -- The city school board has approved a $43.3 million budget for the 2025-26 school year. Chief Financial Officer Lisa Witt said revenues...
Program tackles stress of caregiver burnout
News, Records, Russellville
María Camp maria.camp@franklincountytimes.com 
September 17, 2025
RUSSELLVILLE -- Many people deal with caregiver burnout. Kids and Kin childcare partner Marquita Wilson presented a program at the Russellville Public...
Flavil Wayne McCaig
Obituaries
September 17, 2025
Flavil Wayne McCaig Sept. 12, 2025   Flavil Wayne McCaig, 82, of Russellville, passed away Sept. 12 at his residence. He was born March 3, 1943, to Au...
Cultura Garden Club begins its year with roses and plans for fall
Columnists, News, Opinion
HERE AND NOW
September 17, 2025
The Cultura Garden Club held its first meeting of the year. President Cheri McCain presided. She provided information on projects and programs for the...
We can’t afford to lose electric vehicle industry
Columnists, Opinion
September 17, 2025
In Alabama, we understand what it means to build things that matter. We’ve long been home to builders and winners – our steel won wars and built the s...
Firefighters, cadets honor 9/11 with stair climbs
News, Russellville
María Camp maria.camp@franklincountytimes.com 
September 17, 2025
RUSSELLVILLE – Firefighters and RHS JROTC cadets participated in a stair climb in recognition of the 24th anniversary of 9-11. Sgt. Grant Tarascou and...

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *