EF-4 Tornado Hits Tuscaloosa, April 27, 2011 – WAKA 8
Tornado Damage Near DCH Regional Medical Center in Tuscaloosa – April 27, 2011 – Photo from Associated Press
Debris is littered after a tornado hit, Wednesday, April 27, 2011 Tuscaloosa, Ala. A wave of severe storms laced with tornadoes strafed the South on Wednesday, killing at least 16 people around the region and splintering buildings across swaths of an Alabama university town. (AP Photo/Caroline Summers)
Debris is littered after a tornado hit, Wednesday, April 27, 2011 Tuscaloosa, Ala. A wave of severe storms laced with tornadoes strafed the South on Wednesday, killing at least 16 people around the region and splintering buildings across swaths of an Alabama university town. (AP Photo/Caroline Summers)
University of Alabama Student Survives April 27, 2011 Tornado – Photo from Associated Press
Heather Sanford, a University of Alabama student, looks for her belongings in what used to be the Arlington Square Apartments in the Alberta City neighborhood Thursday April 28, 2011, after a Tornado struck Tuscaloosa, Ala., on Wednesday. President Barack Obama said he would visit Alabama Friday to view damage and meet with the governor and families devastated by the storms. Obama has already expressed condolences by phone to Gov. Robert Bentley and approved his request for emergency federal assistance. (AP Photo/David Bundy)
Heather Sanford, a University of Alabama student, looks for her belongings in what used to be the Arlington Square Apartments in the Alberta City neighborhood Thursday April 28, 2011, after a Tornado struck Tuscaloosa, Ala., on Wednesday. President Barack Obama said he would visit Alabama Friday to view damage and meet with the governor and families devastated by the storms. Obama has already expressed condolences by phone to Gov. Robert Bentley and approved his request for emergency federal assistance. (AP Photo/David Bundy)
Damage from April 27, 2011 Tuscaloosa Tornado – Photo from Associated Press
This is an aerial view of tornado damage as residents in Tuscaloosa, Ala., continue the process of cleaning up Saturday, April 30, 2011. Hundreds of people were killed across the South when a swarm of tornadoes hit on Wednesday. (AP Photo/Dave Martin)
This is an aerial view of tornado damage as residents in Tuscaloosa, Ala., continue the process of cleaning up Saturday, April 30, 2011. Hundreds of people were killed across the South when a swarm of tornadoes hit on Wednesday. (AP Photo/Dave Martin)
Path of April 27, 2011 Tornado That Hit Tuscaloosa – Photo from Associated Press
This is an aerial view of tornado damage and the path the storm took through Tuscaloosa, Ala., as the town begin it's recovery process Saturday, April 30, 2011. Hundreds of people were killed across the South when a swarm of tornadoes hit on Wednesday. (AP Photo/Dave Martin)
This is an aerial view of tornado damage and the path the storm took through Tuscaloosa, Ala., as the town begin it's recovery process Saturday, April 30, 2011. Hundreds of people were killed across the South when a swarm of tornadoes hit on Wednesday. (AP Photo/Dave Martin)
It’s been 12 years since Alabama suffered through the worst tornado outbreak in state history.
Most Alabamians remember the huge tornado that hit Tuscaloosa. That EF-4 storm had winds up to 190 miles per hour and killed 65 people as it moved through Tuscaloosa and Jefferson counties.
But that was just one of 62 tornadoes to hit the state that day, killing 252 people and injuring thousands of others.
Across the country, 26 states were affected by this super outbreak, with 216 tornadoes over an 18-hour period that killed 348 people.
Alabama was the hardest hit. Adding up the damage paths from all of the tornadoes in the state would have stretched for 1,200 miles.
