A Georgia woman died as she hunkered down for the safety of her newborn twin boys as Hurricane Helen battered her rural town.
Obie Williams lost his daughter Kobe Williams, 27, and sons Kazier and Kazmir in Thompson, 190 miles east of Atlanta, when a tree fell on top of their trailer and landed on top of the children. I found a place.
Williams said she received a call from her daughter last week when Helen hit the area. She followed his advice and took shelter in the bathroom with her one-month-old baby until the storm passed. When she stopped answering calls from her family, Williams dodged power lines and knocked down trees to check on her and the boys.
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Kobe Williams and his twin sons, Kazmir and Kiziel, were killed by a falling tree at their home in Thomson, Georgia, during Hurricane Helen on September 30th. (Obie Lee Williams, via AP)
“I've looked at pictures from when my children were born and every day since then, but I still don't think I'll be able to travel out there to see them,” Williams told The Associated Press a few days after the storm hit eastern Georgia. “I didn't have it,” he said. “Now I won't be able to see my grandchildren. It's really shocking.”
Williams' grandchildren were born on Aug. 20 and are the youngest known victims of Helen, which killed at least 230 people across the Southeast.
The death toll is expected to rise further as search and rescue operations continue in new areas.
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A Civil Air Patrol member loads a pickup truck with water for Hurricane Helen relief at a water station in Augusta, Georgia. (AP Photo/Jeffrey Collins)
Williams described her daughter as a sweet, outgoing, strong young woman who was always smiling and loved to make people laugh. She was studying to become a nursing assistant, but took time off from school to give birth to her sons.
“That was my baby,” he said. “And everyone loved her.”
Williams, who lives in Augusta, said many of her 14 other children are still without power in their homes across Georgia. Some took refuge in Atlanta, while others traveled to Augusta to meet and mourn with their fathers.
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Williams said she is waiting for the county coroner to release the body and clear the road before making funeral arrangements.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
