SAVING SELMA: One year since tornado destroyed one-third of city
On January 12, 2023, lives were changed forever as an EF-2 tornado destroyed about one-third of Selma.
The tornado had peak winds of 130 miles per hour and was on the ground for 22 miles. It hit just after noon and lasted 27 minutes.
It touched down in Orrville, to the southwest of the city.
Ray Hogg was in the Selma Country Club when it hit.
“I could hear my ears popping. You could hear the road. Glass going everywhere. You could hear the roof literally being torn off right over our heads. It was scary. I mean I’ve never , I hope I never have to do that again. It was awful.”
Action 8 News found Jeff Reeves trapped in his car that day. His car was blown into another car and then a tree fell on top of it.
“The wind was coming from that direction and pushed me into their car, We all of a sudden saw the tree in the middle of the road and that was it.”
These survival stories can be found all over town. Former longtime District Attorney Michael Jackson was taking shelter in his basement.
“It got completely silent. You couldn’t hear anything. And all of a sudden, the pressure in my ears, like of like being on an airplane. I could feel it — then then I knew the tornado was on me. And you could hear some crashing and that kind of thing. And I thought when I got out of the basement that I wouldn’t have a house.”
So many other people did lose their homes. People in Selma are working to recover to this day.
But it wasn’t long before help arrived — from leaders like Gov. Kay Ivey, charity groups and so many others.
Through all of this came thankfulness that no one was killed on that devastating January day in Selma. There were two people hurt in Orrville.
