Touchdown! Folks in Alabama don't know whether to cheer or run when hearing the expression. Touchdown could mean that we've just won another football National Championship or it could indicate that a tornado is on the ground. I could never be a storm chaser. I'm the one the storm chases. Funnels circle around me like shark fins as I bow my head in a school hallway, kneel down in a convent, or give birth to a newborn baby wailing in unison with the tornado sirens. I huddle with toddlers in showers and beg for shelter in a McDonald's freezer. I remain a sitting duck in a second-floor apartment, and find myself in the wrong place at the wrong time while in the emergency room with storm victims. Life in the Rocket City is a thrill ride which is not for the faint of heart, this I know. So brace yourself for a front row seat on a ride through Tornado Valley! Alabama is the home of the world's deadliest twisters, and Huntsville is in the heart of the arena. Our space history is out of this world, but our tornado history will blow you away. Take a rollercoaster ride through the history of Alabama tornadoes before plunging into the gripping story of the Day of Devastation. Witness the stars falling on Alabama in 1833. Then get ready for the sky to fall! The plot twists as Huntsville's torrid tornado past comes alive in the 1974 Super Tornado Outbreak. The rollercoaster corkscrews as it encounters an unexpected twister in 1989 that slingshots the reader into the angry vortex on Airport Road. The ride cruises before taking another gut-wrenching dive that catapults its riders into an inverted twist from yet another Anderson Hills tornado in 1995. The town turns upside-down but Huntsville survives, revives, and thrives. But the worst is yet to come. Another tornado season is just around the corner. Beware of the month of April, especially on a Wednesday. The warning sirens wail, we're bombarded by softball-sized hail, and an EF3 tornado slams into the jail. It's just another day in Alabama, but the countdown clock is ticking. The next tornado warning could be "the one." Our voice drops to a whisper when we mention an EF5. We realize life is too short. The coaster accelerates. Can you feel the torque? We have no idea what's around the next bend. Suddenly, the nightmare comes true as the ride zooms out of control, this time in a free-fall on April 27, 2011. Alabama is bombarded by a record 62 tornadoes in one day. Abruptly, the ride comes to a screeching halt. The adrenaline rush subsides. You've just experienced Huntsville's Havoc. Immediately the passengers ask one another, "Do you want to ride again?" Some will and some swear, never again.

Lions, and crooks, and ghosts, oh my! Far from an exotic movie set location, Montevallo is a quaint college town in the heart of Alabama. You won't believe the stories from its rural past. Of course, you shouldn't believe everything you hear anyway. Some tales are charming, some surreal, and others border on the absurd. Still, you wonder...no one could make this stuff up. Jean Michelle's daughter is a student at the University of Montevallo. During parent visits, Jean Michelle stumbles upon a gateway into the past on the University of Montevallo's campus. She travels through time to discover if the rumors are true. Only, the characters of the past believe she's Sally, someone they already know. She journeys through Cherokee Indian territory with the infamous Red Eagle and sneaks a glimpse of Reynolds Hall's makeshift Civil War hospital. A wedding feast turns into a disaster at the King Mansion when an uninvited ghost cuts in during a dance. But this may be Jean Michelle's only chance to investigate where Mr. King buried his treasure from the Yankees. Jean Michelle experiences College Night firsthand and must choose a side. The nation's oldest homecoming tradition is directed behind the scenes by a ghost who likes surprises. Will it be a PV or a GV3? She even knocks on Condie's door and meets the former Alabama College's most famous resident. No one can forget the girl on fire, especially her face. Jean Michelle returns to the beautiful campus quad where she started her quest. But the familiar Eclipse cat winks as if something is amiss. She has seen that cat somewhere before. Imagine her surprise when the past catches up with her. Numerous sightings of the historical characters are spotted in the present at Montevallo's American Village. The only legend missing in action is Sasquatch, although he was recently spotted in nearby Chilton County. History literally comes alive on the University of Montevallo's campus. Ghosts of the past linger and appear when least expected. Perhaps there's more to this geographical center of Alabama than just purple spirit or golden pride. Should Jean Michelle reveal the secrets whispered to her from the past? Two can keep a secret if one of them is dead. Benjamin Franklin first spoke these wise words, but he is dead. Which reminds me, Montevallo should be added to your list of places to see before you die. Montevallo, Alabama's Whispered Secrets of the South is the first in a series of books which unravel the untold secrets of small Southern towns. From church bells, train rails, calaboose jails to ghost tales, this book reeks of wisteria, sweet tea, hospitality, and swinging porch doors.

To heaven after the storm is Ari Hallmark's account of her encounter with the heavens. During the April 2011 tornadoes in Arab, Alabama, Ari's parents', grandparents' and cousin's lives were taken, and Ari was knocked unconscious. While her physical body was unconscious, her spirit was invited by angels to go on a journey to the heavens. This book, transcribed by grief counselor Lisa Reburn, is about Ari's journey to and from heaven. Her story is profound and beautiful and continues to awe and inspire those around her.

"The widespread tornado outbreak of April 3-4, 1974, led to the formation of a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration survey team to review the effectiveness of NOAA's tornado warning services. This Natural Disaster Survey Team was formed by the evening of April 4. This report describes the tornado outbreak and presents the findings and recommendations of the survey team"--Foreword.

David Oman McKay (1873-1970) was born in Huntsville, Utah to David McKay and Jennette Eveline Evans. He grew up on a farm in the Ogden Valley and served a mission to Great Briatain when he was a young man. In 1901 he married Emma Ray Riggs and they became the parents of seven children. In 1906 he became an apsotle for the LDS Church and in 1951 he became the ninth president of the LDS Church.