Trump visits tornado-ravaged town in Alabama

Donald Trump visited tornado-ravaged Alabama to take stock of the situation. First lady Melania Trump also accompanied him. Later, Trump discussed with tornado victims.

Beauregard, Alabama: President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump visited the storm-ravaged town of Beauregard, Alabama Friday to survey the damage after a powerful tornado roared through last Sunday, killing nearly two dozen people.

Trump flew by airplane to a military base on the Georgia-Alabama border and boarded a helicopter that provided him with an aerial tour of the region before he arrived in Beauregard, which bore the brunt of the storm, and began meeting with victims.

"We saw things that you wouldn't believe," he said after visiting a section of town where tornado winds tore houses from their foundations and uprooted trees.

Mangled metal siding, wood planks and piping lay strewed on the ground, along with the remnants of everyday life: items of clothing, a sofa, a bottle of Lysol cleaner, and a welcome mat encrusted with dirt.

A local official had briefed Trump and the first lady as they stood in the open outside a trailer belonging to the Federal Emergency Management Agency, which is assisting state and local response efforts.

He met with victims along the streets, hearing their stories and dispensing hugs, in some case. He met privately with survivors and family members, including a woman mourning the loss of 10 relatives. "What they've been through is incredible," he said after he emerged from the meeting.

The president and his wife also visited a makeshift disaster relief center at Providence Baptist Church, where he thanked law enforcement officials and other first responders, and Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen, who oversees FEMA.

"We couldn't get here fast enough," Trump said following the private church meeting. "I wanted to come the day it happened," he said, but added that Gov. Kay Ivey asked him to wait.

The president was already scheduled to fly to his Florida home Friday before the Alabama stop was added to his schedule. He headed to Palm Beach after concluding the Alabama visit.