Tornado hits Mobile, Ala., on Christmas; trees, power lines down

A Christmas Day tornado touched down west of downtown Mobile, Ala., on Tuesday afternoon, knocking down trees and power lines and damaging property. No injuries were immediately reported.

Amateur video of the twister showed a funnel churning through the city, occasionally illuminated by exploding electrical transformers.

The Mobile Fire Department said it had received reports of downed limbs, power lines, gas leaks and damage at Murphy High School inside the city.

The department tweeted that it had not been “overwhelmed” by calls. “We still have plenty of resources and are handling each call as it comes in,” the department said. Crews were going door to door to check on residents.

Alabama Power reported that 31,000 customers had lost power, including nearly 26,000 in Mobile.

Residents reported some home damage and downed trees.

The tornado appeared as a line of storms rolled through the Gulf Coast region on Tuesday, with a somewhat rare system also bringing snow to the lower Plains.

[Updated, 7:12 p.m. Dec. 25: This post has been updated with a new number of customers without power.]

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