MMMM # 92 -- For Some, No Warning

     The 1977 Smithfield Estates tornado on the hills north of Birmingham was the first major story I remember covering after I moved to Alabama. Yesterday was the anniversary of the storm. 22 people died after the twister wiped out an entire row of homes. I took these photos from the WERC Helicopter the next morning, though I was on the scene on the ground about an  hour after it struck.

     That's I-65 just north of Birmingham in the distance.

     If you're wondering why this is an MMMM post, here's the reason: Smithfield Estates was an upper-middle-class black subdivision, and it was speculated at the time that the lack of  black radio stations with weather wires (a direct link to the National Weather Service that printed out routine and emergency weather information) contributed to the lack of warning that the storm was coming. 22 people died and more than 100 were injured. Nearby Daniel Payne College was so heavily damaged it closed.

  Weather radio was a brand new technology...so says the National Weather Service:

Timely tornado warnings provided by the National Weather Service allowed people to take necessary action well ahead of the approaching storm. The new NOAA Weather Radio program played a huge role in the process. Warnings were broadcast live on the Birmingham KIH-54 transmitter which was just implemented five months prior to this event.

   I've never seen a statistic about the number of weather radio in circulation at the time, but it must have been small.