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Singletons picking up the pieces after destruction
"We are blessed," she said. Audrey Singleton's voice was filled with gratitude for the way her neighbors and church friends responded to the devastation to her home following the tornado that hit near Chatom on Wednesday, Nov. 15. When the tornado struck at about 5:40 a.m Audrey and her son Chad, were still in bed; her daughter a public school teacher, was in the shower. "That was the most awful roaring I've ever heard in my life and the house began to vibrate. As the wind tore off the tin roof, it apparently rolled across the rafters adding to the noise," she stated. She said her son, Chad, told her it could not have been a full minute after he heard the noise that the tornado touched down. Chad got into his bedroom closet. Mrs. Singleton did not have time. "When Chad got downstairs, it was raining in the living room like the outdoors," Audrey said. "The roof over that room had been torn away down to the rafters. We have a lot of mud in our living room.
The Singletons had recently purchased a 30 ft. travel trailer that was parked in the yard. The tornado picked it up and turned it upside down. "We had not even been to the courthouse to register the trailer, yet." She stated. Additionally three family vehicles parked in the yard were demolished. Charles Singleton, who is Washington County's Probate Judge- Elect, was already at work when his wife called and told him he needed to come home. He was unable to drive to his home due to the cars lining the roadway. He stopped and walked in. The rescue workers could not drive onto the Singleton property; they had to walk in carrying chain saws to begin clearing a way out.
Chad Singleton said it one of the scariest experiences he had ever been through. "I've been in some scary situations, but this was probably the scaredest I've ever been in my life," he said. It was all over quickly, and when Chad knew the tornado was gone, the first thing he did was check on the others in the house to make sure they were alright. "After I determined everyone else was okay, I began to check out what kind of damage had been done to the house," said Chad Singleton. "That's when I noticed a lot of water coming into the living room and utility room." The roof had been ripped from that part of the home and it was raining into the house. Volunteers from throughout the community and other parts of the county began to converge on the area. Broken trees blocking the road to the Singletons' home were cut away with chainsaws or moved by a backhoe. "The community's response to this was overwhelming," said Chad. "The amount of effort that went on that day in getting things cleaned up was remarkable." Charles Singleton agreed with his son's assessment of the day's events. "The response from the community was unreal," he said. "You know, we are usually the ones doing the helping, so it felt kind of strange to have the shoe on the other foot." The Singletons expressed their thanks to all those who helped, sent cards, offered the use of their vehicles and provided food and drinks for the victims and volunteers.
(Some of the information in this story was provided by the editor of The South Alabamian, Evan Carden)
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