At least five people died due to some of the dozens of tornadoes that swept the great plains of the central USA, the authorities announced yesterday Sunday.
After the 78 tornadoes recorded on Friday, mainly in the states of Iowa and Nebraska, another 35 were counted yesterday Saturday in North Texas and Missouri, according to the US National Weather Service (NWS).
Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt confirmed the death of four people in his state on Sunday.
A woman was killed in the small town of Sulphur, who was hit hard, the governor said during a press conference.
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Photos and videos uploaded to social media sites show dozens of homes completely destroyed and vehicles reduced to shapeless masses of metal.
More than a hundred kilometers away, in Holdenville, at least two other people died, according to the disaster management agency. Local media reported that one of the victims was a four-month-old infant.
Debris clearing operations continued Sunday.
A fourth person died on a highway in Marietta, same state. Footage broadcast by local media shows two trucks with trailers overturned and a warehouse cut in half.
Gov. Stitt declared a 30-day state of emergency for Oklahoma.
Heavy rains also hit many communities and emergency warnings remained in effect yesterday, including flash flooding, hail and tornadoes.
In Iowa, a man succumbed to his injuries at a hospital where he was being treated, his family told local TV station KETV NewsWatch 7 (owned by the ABC News network), bringing the death toll to five.
< p> More than 25,000 households were without power in Texas and 19,000-plus in Oklahoma after noon yesterday, according to the specialist website PowerOutage.
Tornadoes, spectacular and difficult to predict weather phenomena, are common. in the US, especially in the central and southern parts of the country.
However, it is extremely rare for strong tornadoes to follow one another, according to meteorologists.
Source: APE-MPE< br />
