HOUSTON – Authorities said that the death toll has risen to 29 after tornadoes and storms touched down in multiple midwestern and southern US states since Friday.
In Tennessee, at least 12 people died, including nine in McNairy County where more than 70 buildings were destroyed by severe weather Friday into early Saturday, local officials said. Three others – two kids and an adult – were killed in Memphis when a tree fell on a structure, reported Xinhua.
Indiana and Arkansas each reported five deaths, state officials said.
At least four people were killed in Illinois, including a 50-year-old man who died on the scene when the roof of the Apollo Theatre in Belvidere collapsed on Friday night. Three others were killed following the collapse of a residential structure in the state’s Crawford County.
Fatalities were also reported in Alabama, Mississippi and Delaware states. A USA Today report said suspected tornadoes touched down as far north as New Jersey on the eastern coast.
Severe weather has left almost 400,000 homes and businesses without power in more than 10 southern and eastern US states on yesterday, said the report.
“Unfortunately, more severe weather is possible in the coming days,” the US National Weather Service warned. Thunderstorms are expected to develop tomorrow through Wednesday morning.
The latest “intense supercell thunderstorms” are only expected to become more common in middle and southern US states, as temperatures rise around the world, experts said. – Bernama, April 3, 2023
