Sally slashes through south Alabama, flooding rural areas

Hurricane Sally left a trail of damage through rural south Alabama on Wednesday, but it could take days to get an accurate report.

The tropical system “wreaked havoc,” in Baldwin County, said Zach Hood, director of the local emergency management agency.

“We have life-threatening conditions in Baldwin County,” he said in a Facebook Live update Wednesday.

Roads were not safe to travel and he urged residents to shelter in place. The roads should only be used for emergency travel. All river systems in the county are expected to see “major if not historic,” flood conditions, Hood said.

Just outside of Loxley, resident Buck Bryant’s yard was littered with shingles, likely a mix from his and neighbors' homes. He rode the storm out with his wife and mother-in-law in the community, which is 30 miles inland in northern Baldwin County. A veteran of storms on the coast, he decided to stay for Sally instead of evacuating to his sister’s home in Selma.

At 8:30 a.m. he was wondering if he made the right decision. The winds have downed trees in the neighborhood and they have been without power since about 10 p.m. Tuesday.

“The problem with leaving is getting back home,” the 54-year-old said. “You get back home and you don’t have gas in the vehicle. But staying means a different kind of anxiety. You’re up all night listening to the house creaking and popping and wondering if the roof is going to go. From about midnight to 4 o’clock it was really rocking and rolling.

“It was a rough night.”

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The ridge cap of the roof is gone, and buckets were spaced around the home catching leaks.

“I’m just waiting for it to calm down enough to get outside and maybe put a tarp or sheeting on the worst parts of the roof,” he said.

Wide spread power outages were reported in southern Alabama counties as the storm tracked along the Alabama-Florida line.

Covington County declared all county roads impassable at 1 p.m. and stopped traffic. The cities of Andalusia and Opp had shut down all traffic on their roads by noon.

Emergency Management Agency Director Susan Harris said there were no reports of injuries but that several roads were damaged and couldn’t be repaired until fallen trees were cleared away. She said county roads would remain closed to traffic “until this event is over.”

At 2 p.m. Pike County's EMA was reporting trees down and power outages but no major damage.

River flooding is a concern going forward.

The National Weather Service has issued a flood warning for the Pea River in Elba. Flood stage is 30 feet and the river is expected to crest at 41.8 feet on Friday morning and fall below flood stage Saturday night.

Live updates:Tropical Storm Sally live updates: Dauphin Island Sea Lab damaged; research, teaching to be suspended

Central Alabama flood warnings

• The Tallapoosa River at the Tallapoosa Water plant affecting Montgomery and Elmore counties. Wednesday morning the level was 8.5 feet. Flood stage is 25 feet. The river is expected to rise above flood stage Thursday morning and crest Friday morning.
• The Alabama River at Montgomery affecting Autauga, Dallas, Elmore, Lowndes and Montgomery counties. Wednesday morning the level was 20.8 feet with flood stage at 35 feet. The river is expected to rise above flood stage Friday afternoon and go below flood stage Friday night.
• The Alabama River at Selma affecting Dallas County. Wednesday morning the level was 18.8 feet with flood stage at 45 feet. The river is expected to rise above flood stage Saturday night and fall below flood stage Sunday morning.

Contact Montgomery Advertiser reporter Marty Roney at mroney@gannett.com. Reporter Brad Harper contributed to this report.