By By Lisa Tindell
news editor
A collection of angels stood on the mantel in the home of Ruth Rhodes Friday morning undisturbed by high winds that whipped around the home just after 5 a.m.
Rhodes, who lives on Paradise Lane off Travis Road south of Brewton, sat in her home that had been stripped of front and back porches by what officials are calling a tornado. A large outbuilding was also destroyed on the property with the roof being torn away and several trees falling on the structure.
So fast, in fact, Rhodes said she didn’t have time to be upset about the situation that surrounded her home.
Betty Thompson, a neighbor of Rhodes, said her property did not suffer any damage as a result of the severe weather, but she heard the Rhodes home being damaged.
The Friday morning storm was almost an exact copy of damage in the Appleton area Thursday morning.
A strange formation in the sky that morning made Appleton resident Ron Crutchfield run for his life.
Crutchfield said he knew he had to act quickly.
Crutchfield said his grandchildren had just boarded a school bus minutes before the tornado passed through his neighborhood.
Escambia County Emergency Management Director David Adams said he is still waiting on confirmation that what tore through Appleton and other areas over the two-day period were tornadoes, but he believes that’s exactly what they were.
Not only did the severe weather damage Rhodes’ home Friday morning, other damages were seen in the Roberts and Dixie communities farther east.
Adams commended the efforts of all of those involved in responding to the incident and clearing trees and other debris.
Members of the Escambia County Sheriff’s Department, Appleton Volunteer Fire Department, West Escambia Chapter of the American Red Cross and other volunteers responded to the incident in Appleton Thursday.