PIEDMONT, Mo. (AP) — Residents in parts of the United States who were hit by unusually malicious weather investigated damage from violent tornadoes, strong winds and blind sandstorms Sunday, destroying homes and other structures, killing at least 35 people.
National Weather Service meteorologist Cody Snell said there are tornado clocks available Sunday morning for parts of Carolina, East Georgia and northern Florida. He said the main threat is to damage the wind, but there is a possibility of more tornadoes.
“As we go through today, there is still the possibility of severe weather from, say, Ohio Valley and western Pennsylvania. The rest of the Atlantic and Southeastern Oceans are still moving around the country and won’t clear the East Coast until tonight,” Snell said.
The dynamic storm from Friday to Sunday has earned an unusual “high risk” designation from weather forecasters. Still, experts said it’s not uncommon to see such weather in March.
Alabama’s death toll rises to 3
At least three people were killed in central Alabama, and multiple tornadoes took the state by storm. Among the people killed was an 82-year-old woman in a manufactured home that was destroyed by a Twister, Dallas County Sheriff Michael L. Grantham said Sunday.
The 19-year-old was shot by Orange County police after swinging a weapon on an officer.
In Troy, Alabama, Parks officials said the recreation center, where more than 200 people took shelter due to the damages caused by the overnight storm, will be closed. No one was injured.
“The recreation center has significant damage to the entire building,” the Parks department said. “We are grateful that Lord protected over 200 guests on Saturday night at our community and the Storm Shelter at our recreation center.”
Deaths from abused Missouri Twisters reach 12
Missouri resident Dakota Henderson said others who are saving him and his locked neighbors discovered five bodies scattered around the wreckage Friday night, outside what remained at his aunt’s house in Wayne County. Authorities said the scattered twisters killed at least 12 people.
“Last night was a very rough deal,” Henderson said Saturday. He said he saved his aunt from the window in the room that left him. “It really bothers me what happened to people last night.”
Authorities were still sifting through the damage caused by a massive tornado.
On Saturday, Butler County Coroner Jim Akers described an “unrecognized house” in which one man was killed as “just a field of debris.”
“The floor was upside down,” he said. “We were walking down the wall.”
Six people died in Mississippi. Three people die in Arkansas
In Mississippi, Gov. Tate Reeves announced that six people have died in three counties, and three more have gone missing late Saturday.
Bailey Dillon, 24, and her fiance, Caleb Burns, were seen from the front porch in Tylertown as a massive twister attacked about half a mile (0.8 km) away near Paradise Ranch RV Park.
The 19-year-old was shot by Orange County police after swinging a weapon on an officer.
They then checked if anyone needed help.
“The amount of damage was devastating,” Dillon said. “It was a ton of cabins, RVs, campers. Everything was destroyed.”
Paradise Ranch said on Facebook that all staff and guests are explaining safely, but Dillon said the damage has extended beyond the RV park itself.
“The house and everything was destroyed around it,” she said. “The schools and buildings are completely gone.”
In Arkansas, authorities have confirmed three deaths.
Duststorm causes 11 deaths in Kansas and Texas. Oklahoma is facing wildfires
Spurred by the system’s early winds, Duststorm insisted on living for almost 12 people on Friday. Eight people have been killed in the Kansas Highway Pileup, which includes at least 50 vehicles, according to State Highway Patrol. Authorities said three people were killed in a car accident during a dust storm at Amarillo, the Texas Panhandle.
More than 130 fires have been reported in Oklahoma, with around 300 homes damaged or destroyed, Gov. Kevin Stitt said.
Some images from extreme weather have gone viral online.
Tad Peters and his father, Richard Peters, refueled a pickup truck in Laura, Missouri, Friday night, heard a tornado siren and watched other drivers flee the interstate.
Dozens of people died in a panic escape running through an overcrowded nightclub in North Macedonia
“Oh, is this coming? Ah, it’s here. You can hear Tad Peters say on the video. “Look at all the pieces of that. Ah, my God, we’re torn…”
His father then rolled the window.
The two headed to Indiana for a weightlifting competition, but decided to return to Norman, Oklahoma, about six hours away, where they encountered a wildfire.
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Walker reported that it was reported from Louisville, Kentucky by New York and Reynolds. Contributors were Bruce Shippkovsky of the Toms River, New Jersey, Jeff Roberson of Wayne County, Missouri, Jean Johnson of Seattle and Johnny Herr of San Francisco.
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