March 25, 2023, 23:29 PM
March 25, 2023, 23:29 PM
At least 24 people have died after a powerful tornado tore through part of the US state of Mississippi on Friday night.
More people are believed to be trapped under the rubble of the destroyed buildings.
The whirlwind left extensive devastation in several towns, where trees and power poles were uprooted and tens of thousands of blackouts were reported.
Other states in the south of the country are preparing for the impact of these powerful storms.
In addition, in other regions of the state there were hail the size of golf balls and heavy rain.
It is not yet clear if it was one tornado or multiple tornadoes that hit the area.
While the National Weather Service warned yesterday that multiple tornadoes were forecast, it is possible that the devastation was caused by what is known as a “jumping tornado”a single eddy that moves away from the surface but makes landfall several times elsewhere.
Residents of Rolling Rock, a small town in western Mississippi, said the tornado blew out the windows of their homes. Damage in that area is reportedly particularly severe.
Brandy Showah, a local resident, told CNN: “I’ve never seen anything like it… This used to be a great little town and now it’s gone.”
Others say they saw sparks from electrical transformers and collapsed walls.
Some people were trapped in piles of rubble and the whereabouts of several police units in Sharkey County are unknown.
According to Sam Emmerson of the University of Oklahoma School of Meteorology, the “extremely high caliber” tornado lifted waste more than 9,000 meters high.
Mississippi Governor Tate Reeves wrote on Twitter that search and rescue teams were offering medical help to those affected.
The National Meteorological Service announced this Saturday morning that the cleanup operations had already begun, but advised citizens to stay away from downed power lines, not enter affected buildings or walk through flooded areas.
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