At least 11 people died in the south and east of the central part of the country. USAas tornadoes and severe storms have destroyed homes and businesses as the northeast of the country braces for possible severe storms today.
A tornado violently hit Arkansas in the American South yesterday, killing at least six people, rural state Republican Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders said at a news conference. Sanders declared a state of emergency in the area. “Central Arkansas has suffered significant damage,” he tweeted.
Pulaski County, which includes the Arkansas capital of Little Rock, has been hit hard. Residents woke up from a picture of destruction. The tornado tore off the roofs and walls of buildings, scattered cars like toys, uprooted trees and cut down part of the power grid.
“Many people have had to leave their homes and seek shelter,” Little Rock Mayor Frank Scott said.
Lara Farrar, a reporter for a local financial newspaper, told AFP by phone that she was “absolutely shocked” to see the devastation near her home in Little Rock. “Some buildings were completely blown off the roof,” she said, describing images of damaged buildings, collapsed walls and uprooted trees.
City cut in half
The city of Wynn, located in the northeastern part of the state, “was basically cut in half due to east-west damage,” Mayor Jennifer Hobbs told CNN.
Mississippi disaster officials also reported one dead and many injured in Pontotoc County, about 200 miles south of Memphis.
An elderly man also died in Alabama when a tornado tore through his home, officials in Huntsville, near the Tennessee border, said.
North, in the small town of Belvidere, west of Chicago, Illinois, a heavy storm caused part of the roof and facade of the Apollo Theater to collapse during a heavy metal band concert.
Authorities reported one dead and 28 injured, including five in hospital with serious injuries.
Television footage shows injured spectators being carried away on stretchers, and photos on social media show the area filled with waist-high debris and a hole in the roof.
200,000 homes without electricity
In neighboring Indiana, three people died as a result of the storm in Sullivan County, authorities said.
Nearly 200,000 homes in Indiana, Ohio, Arkansas and Illinois are now without electricity, according to US Poweroutage.
The National Weather Service issued a warning of strong winds and severe thunderstorms that could hit the northeast, including Ohio, this Saturday.
A week ago, a tornado swept across the Mississippi, killing 25 people and causing massive property damage. President Joe Biden visited the area yesterday Friday.
Source: Kathimerini
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