Tornado ratings upgraded nearly a week after devastating outbreak

Nearly a week after a round of severe weather collapsed homes, tore apart neighborhoods and claimed the lives of at least six people, a dozen tornado paths were confirmed Monday across Alabama, Georgia and Mississippi -- and survey crews upgraded the intensity of some of the most destructive twisters that touched down.

The National Weather Service has totaled one EF4, four EF3, three EF2, three EF1 and one EF0 tornadoes tore through Alabama and Georgia during the severe weather event on March 25 and into the following morning. At least seven other tornadoes rated from EF0 to EF2 were reported across Kentucky, Tennessee and South Carolina on the same day for a total of 19 tornadoes.

On March 29, four of the 11 tornadoes that cut through Alabama were upgraded to a higher intensity -- the Elliotts Creek, the Ohatchee to Wellington and Sawyerville to Centreville to Columbiana tornadoes all determined to be of EF3 strength. The fourth tornado, which touched down in Marengo County, was upgraded to an EF2.

Confirmed Tornadoes March 25, 2021 (As of March 29)

Originally rated as an EF2, the Ohatchee to Wellington tornado claimed the lives of at least five individuals, three of which were from the same household.

Latasha Harris-Ramos lost her sister, Ebonique Harris, and two parents Joe Wayne Harris and Barbara Harris, in the tornado as it passed through Ohatchee, according to the governor's office.

"Reach out and let folks know what you need, cause everybody wants to help," Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey told Harris-Ramos and her husband during her tour of Calhoun County following the storms. The governor had also stopped by Hale, Bibb and Shelby counties in a tour on Monday, March 29, to the areas impacted by the tornadoes.

After meeting with the families of the storm victims, Ivey tweeted she was "utterly impressed" by the Harris family's "positive spirit in the midst of this tragedy" and added that she will be keeping them in her prayers.

"AL is no stranger to the wrath of Mother Nature," Ivey wrote in a tweet. "This is the time when AL will show what we're made of, & that is grit, resiliency & compassion. We're a state where neighbors help neighbors & that was proven throughout today's tour in Calhoun, Hale, Bibb and Shelby Counties."

Across the latter in the list of counties, the National Weather Service confirmed a long-tracking tornado path after nearly a week of surveying damage stretching across about five counties.

The path tracks from Sawyerville in Hale County to Centreville in Bibb County to Columbiana in Shelby County, though appearing to have clipped through Perry and Chilton counties as well. The total distance for its run sits at an astounding 80.38 miles over its more or less 98-minute lifespan with a track of up to 1.3 miles wide. At the height of its intensity, the NWS ranked it as an EF3 with 150-mph winds.

The fourth EF3 tornado cut through West Blocton in Bibb County to North Shelby in Shelby County.

The Eagle Point subdivision in the northern area of Shelby County, south of Birmingham, Alabama, saw extensive damage, the wreckage suggesting winds of up to 140 mph. In this area, the home of Mary Rose and Larry DeArman collapsed in on them, trapping them in the basement where they had taken shelter until their neighbors were able to bring two ladders to pull them out.

"When that happened it was just like a roaring, there was no train ... it was a roaring," Mary Rose told ABC meteorologist Ginger Zee. The "house started shaking and then everything caved in on us," she said.

Mary Rose DeArman tells ABC that neighbors helped her and her husband climb out of the basement after their home collapsed. (ABC NewsOne)

The EF4 tornado which tracked through the Atlanta suburb of Newnan, Georgia, just after midnight claimed the life of at least one person, and drone footage taken the day after captured the widespread destruction the powerful twister left behind.

While it had been too dark to fully assess the full scope of the damage that night, the morning light revealed the full might the 170-mph winds had brought to the area.

Debris from homes and torn-up trees lay shredded together across neighborhoods. Other houses appeared to have almost been crushed in place, trees around the areas snapped in half.

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