A Bertie County man is counting his blessings after being picked up and tossed around during Sunday's tornado.

Falk Lassiter says he stepped out of his home when the storm hit and could not believe what happened next. "I didn't think I was going to be next. As soon as I stepped back in the house it took me and shook the trailer and my girlfriend. I was airborne. I think i was caught in a vortex or something I slammed into the ground." Lassiter then crawled over to his girlfriend. Both were taken to the hospital. His girlfriend remains in stable condition. Lassiter's home is destroyed and his dog died in the storm.

Storm victim John Gilliam says the tornado sounded like a freight train. " I could feel the floor just rumbling. The loud noise came over and debris started blowing."

National Weather Service officials say an E-F2 tornado touched down three different times along about a 25 mile stretch causing millions of dollars worth of damage.

Sunday Tornado Damage In Bertie County

Preliminary estimates show at least $2.5 million in damages from last night's storm that struck Bertie County.

The National Weather Service says an EF-2 torndao touched down in three different locations yesterday.

Emergency crews were out this morning accessing damage from last night's tornado which hit around 6:30 p.m.

Ricky Freeman, Bertie County Emergency Management Director tells WITN News that 50 structures were damaged by the twister. Crime Control & Public Safety says 9 people received minor injuries from the storm.

Freeman says the Luella Baptist Church on Coniotte Road sustained severe damage with the front half of the church destroyed.

The storm took almost the same path that one did in 1984 which killed 8 people in the county.

Emergency management says all roads in Bertie County are now open, except Piney Woods Road, which was in the worst hit area.

The storm hit near Lewiston Woodville. Numerous trees are down. Cars and larger vehicles were tossed around. There are reports of grapefruit to softball size hail.

Bertie County Schools closed Monday because of the damage and power issues.

If you snap any storms pictures, we hope you'll click on the Carolina Capture link and submit them. The Carolina Camera link is on most witntv.com web pages, just look for the camera icon. Make sure to tell us at least your first name and where the photo was taken.