NWS says straight-line winds blew over mobile home in Bertie County

BERTIE COUNTY, N.C. (WITN) - The National Weather Service said straight-line winds and not a tornado blew over a mobile home Thursday night in Bertie County.

It happened south of Powellsville on Hexlena Road off of Highway 13.

Bertie County Emergency Services Director Mitch Cooper tells WITN that a man was taken to the hospital as a precaution with what were described as minor injuries.

Family members say Randy Nixon had to crawl out of the wreckage. “He has a few bruises and stuff. Right now he’s in shock. I asked him if was okay and he was just standing. He was in shock,” said his sister, Latasha Nixon.

It happened south of Powellsville on Hexlena Road off of Highway 13. The only thing standing at the home was the stairs that led to the front door.

Fortunately, the rest of the family was at Walmart when the storm hit, according to the sister. The family spent Friday combing through the wreckage, trying to salvage what they could.

A woman who lives across the road said debris ended up breaking her window. Lucille Sessoms says she heard a tornado. “Like a loud roar or like a freight train coming thru,” the woman told us.

Meteorologists estimate the straight-line winds were between 70 and 75 miles per hour, and well north of circulation spotted on Doppler radar near Askewville.

Emergency Services also said there were trees down and some power outages in the area.

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