May 6, 1967 GES Tornado
It was a busy Saturday night at the GES store near the Alabama State Fairgrounds in the West End section of Birmingham. The date was May 6, 1967.
The department store was filled with shoppers about 7 p.m. when a store manager saw a tornado approaching. He yelled for customers to get down seconds before the twister struck the store.
A 57 year old woman who was visiting her daughter on First Court West as she watched the tornado from the front door. She was killed when 2×12 timbers launched airborne from a nearby lumber yard was hurled into the house.
Birmingham Deputy Fire Chief Neal Gallant watched the storm as it tore down Lomb Avenue. A five block area near the Fairgrounds was hardest hit.
The evening feature at the Fair Park Drive Inn was cancelled when the tornado ripped the screen down. No big loss. The feature was “Weird World of LSD.â€
Twenty five people were injured along the F2 tornado’s four mile path. Two homes were destroyed and sixty damaged. Another thirty industrial buildings were damaged.
Do you have memories of this storm? Please add your post…
Comments
Category: Uncategorized
Bill, was that the same tornado that narrowly missed West End Baptist Hospital, now Princeton Med center, and also destroyed LL BBQ?
So I feel really old right now. I can remember going to my father’s business and driving by the old drive-in and seeing it destroyed and all of the damage in that area. It was my first glimpse of what a tornado could actually do. I then understood why my Mom would freak out when bad weather was in the area.
Dave…I think that is right…but I am not totally certain. I think Cindy is confirming it in her email.
I remember the storm clearly and recall going with my father and grandfather to West End to see the damage the following day (a Sunday). I think there was damage to Rickwood Field.
Perhaps some other readers will share their insight.
I remember that evening like it was yesterday I was 11 years old and lived on Madison Ave just S.E. of the fairgrounds saw the tornado touch down saw many power flashes the funnel was greenish brown saw the tornado hit the GES store just to the east of us. Did sound like a freight train also remember the weather people saying that this tornado took a North West to South east track which if you look at a map of Lomb ave that verifies this. Tornadoes normally track SW to NE. One last note a Speaker pole complete with 2 speakers from the Fair Park Drive in Theater landed in our front yard. Tjhe Double L BBQ was destroyed.I do remember that one lady did pass away because of the storm. The storm was recently upgraded from an F2 to F3 rating
[...] A couple of years ago, I did a post on the tornado. Here is a link to that post. [...]