'It's bad': Sheriff says person killed, 10 homes destroyed in Bertie County tornado

By Adam Owens, WRAL anchor/reporter

Windsor, N.C. — One person is dead and several are missing after a tornado hit a neighborhood in Bertie County early Tuesday morning.

Sheriff John Hadley said he hasn’t seen anything this bad in the 38 years he has worked at the Bertie County Sheriff’s Office.

“It’s bad,” Hadley told WRAL News at the scene. “It doesn’t look real, it looks like something on TV. Nothing is there.”

Hadley said he got a call around 1:30 a.m. that a tornado hit the small neighborhood on Morning Road in the town of Windsor.

“All my officers are down there at this time,” he said. “Pretty much the entire trailer park is gone.”

Hadley said the wreckage is so bad that deputies won’t let anyone get to the neighborhood.

At least 10 homes are gone, and there is one blocked by a tree that crews can’t even reach, he said.

Crews at the scene are searching for missing people and cleaning up the community, which is covered with debris and household items.

“There are still valuables on the ground like generators and guns,” he said. “We’re trying to make sure no one takes anything that isn’t theirs.”

Hadley said it’s an emotional scene for his team to work.

“One minute you’re fine, and the next, all hell breaks loose,” he said.

Several miles away, in the parking lot of Abrams BBQ on U.S. Highway 13, a fried chicken food truck was on its side, possibly as a result of the tornado. The restaurant itself was missing an entire side due to wind damage.

Inside, chairs were still stacked on tables, but the entire side was missing.