US President Joe Biden declared a state of emergency in Mississippi after a deadly tornado swept through the southern state and killed at least 26 people.
Biden provided federal aid to the hardest-hit counties, including Carroll, Humphreys, Monroe, and Sharkey.
At least 25 people were killed and dozens more were injured in the state as the severe storm swept through several cities during its hours-long journey Friday night. In Alabama, a man died after his trailer rolled over several times.
The city of Rolling Fork in Sharkey was almost completely razed to the ground, the tornado flattened houses and reduced them to rubble, broke logs in half, overturned cars and destroyed the water tower.
“How anyone survived, I don’t know,” said Rodney Porter, who lives 20 miles south of Rolling Fork. Associated Press. When a storm broke on Friday night, he immediately went there to help in any way he could. Porter arrived to find “complete devastation” and said he smelled natural gas and heard people scream for help in the dark.
“Houses are gone, houses are piled on top of houses, and cars are on top,” he said.
Annette Body came to the rural community of Silver City from nearby Belozie. She said she felt “blessed” that her own home hadn’t been destroyed, but that others had lost everything.
“Crying last night, crying this morning,” she said. “They told you to take cover, but it happened so fast that many people didn’t even have time to take cover.”
Hundreds of people are still fleeing the state as search and rescue teams again dig up the rubble of collapsed homes and offices on Sunday. Homeless shelters have opened across the state.
As shocked residents see the damage, they brace for more bad weather as the National Weather Service warned of deteriorating weather on Sunday, including high winds, heavy hail and possible tornadoes in eastern Louisiana, south-central Mississippi and south-central Alabama.
Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves declared a state of emergency and promised to help rebuild. He spoke with Mr. Biden, who also met with a state congressional delegation.
“Today, the scale of destruction and casualties is visible everywhere. Homes, businesses… entire communities. React, repair, rebuild together. This is the mission,” Reeves wrote on Twitter.
This was announced by meteorologist of the National Weather Service in Jackson Lance Perrilou. Associated Press that initial storm reports and radar data indicated that the tornado had traveled 170 miles.
“It’s rare – very, very rare,” he said, citing widespread long-term atmospheric instability.
Perrilou said preliminary results showed the tornado headed southwest from Rolling Fork, then continued northeast toward Midnight and Silver City, and then toward Chula, Black Hawk and Winona.
With additional reporting from agencies
Source: I News
I am Michael Melvin, an experienced news writer with a passion for uncovering stories and bringing them to the public. I have been working in the news industry for over five years now, and my work has been published on multiple websites. As an author at 24 News Reporters, I cover world section of current events stories that are both informative and captivating to read.