Alabama Prays

I publish my last post from the Birmingham, Alabama Airport as I wait to catch my flight home. The last day seemed the most emotional as I covered an outdoor prayer service at the Soma Church in Holt, Alabama during which even the pastor broke down.

Holt, Alabama

Here are images I took yesterday in Holt, Alabama as I walked through the streets photographing the devastation. Except for one time when I woman yelled at me to "Get the Hell out of here!" every single person I met during this trip was extremely nice and open to tell their story. When I told some of those I was down photographing from Boston they were beyond surprised and at times glad to see me there to help their story be seen. I was photographing people who literally lost all of their belongings and they still had such large smiles on their faces as they went through the rubble. They all had the same reason to smile, saying they were just thankful to be alive.

When that woman yelled at me I instantly brushed it off knowing that she must have been through a lot and was just venting.

Coming home for the first time after the storm.

I was there today as some families returned to their Holt, Alabama homes for the first time since the deadly storm hit on April 27, 2011. Members of the National Guard were there to help search through the rubble. Here are some images from today.

More from Alabama

Here are some more images from Alabama where crews worked today to clean up the debris in the damaged area and restore power. I'm off to take more pictures.... check back for an update soon.

Deadly Storms hit the South. Photos from Tuscaloosa Alabama

I couldn't let a story this big go by with out going and documenting it myself. This has become the second most deadly tornado event in United States history, over 200 hundred tornados touched down on April 27, 2011 killing over three hundred with the death toll expected to rise.