Mississippi tornado kills 26 and brings devastation to US state
Search and rescue efforts are continuing in Mississippi after a deadly tornado hit the US state.
At least 25 people have died in the state, and one in Alabama, with dozens more left injured by Friday’s tornado.
The storms devastated several rural towns, with Rolling Fork in western Sharkey County almost completely wiped out.
Mississippi state governor Tate Reeves has declared a state of emergency to help respond to the damage.
US President Joe Biden also described the images coming out of Mississippi as “heartbreaking”, and said the federal government would “do everything we can to help”.
“We will be there as long as it takes. We will work together to deliver the support you need to recover,” he said in a statement.
More storms are predicted to hit parts of Alabama and Georgia early on Sunday and potentially bring large hail.
The storm system which ripped through Mississippi produced a tornado that has caused catastrophic damage to communities across the state. The biggest twister obliterated dozens of buildings in several small towns, flipping cars on their sides and toppling power lines.
The small town of Rolling Fork, located in Sharkey County in western Mississippi, has essentially been wiped out, according to its mayor.
“My city is gone,” Mayor Eldridge Walker told CNN. “But we’re resilient and we’re going to come back.”
He added that lots of families in his community were “affected and hurting”, and all he could see was “devastation”.
Rolling Fork residents said windows were blown out of the back of their homes.
Local resident Brandy Showah told CNN: “I’ve never seen anything like this… This was a very great small town, and now it’s gone.”
Drone footage of Rolling Fork, shared with the BBC, shows the devastation inflicted on the town. Trucks and trees are shown piled on top of buildings, with detritus scattered over large areas.
Cornel Knight told the Associated Press that he, his wife and their three-year-old daughter were at a relative’s home in Rolling Fork and that it was “eerily quiet” just before the tornado struck. He said the sky was dark but “you could see the direction from every transformer that blew”.
He said the tornado struck another relative’s house, where a wall collapsed and trapped several people inside.
Mississippi state governor Tate Reeves has visited Silver City and Winona to meet with affected residents who had been hit by the tornado’s fury.
Sharing an update on Twitter, Mr Reeves described the situation as a “tragedy”, writing: “We are blessed with brave, capable responders and loving neighbours. Please continue to pray.”
It is not yet clear whether one or several tornadoes hit the area on Friday night. Although yesterday the National Weather Service warned that several tornadoes were forecast, it is possible the devastation was caused by a “skipping tornado” – a single twister that lifts from the surface only to touch down again.
Sam Emmerson from the School of Meteorology at the University of Oklahoma said that the “extremely high-calibre” tornado lofted debris above 30,000ft (9144m).
One local weather forecaster, concerned at the strength of a tornado about to hit the town of Amory, momentarily paused his TV forecast to offer a prayer for the residents of the town. (BBC)
