At least 26 people are in dead after tornados ripped through South and Midwest states in the US this weekend.

At least nine people have died in one Tennessee county, four in the small town of Wynne, Arkansas, three in Sullivan, Indiana and four in Illinois. Others have died in Alabama and Mississippi.

It comes as parts of Mississippi are still recovering from one, long-track tornado that killed at least 26 people in the state in late March.

The most recent tornados have caused havoc for towns and cities. Here, i takes a look at the latest damage.

Which states have been hit by tornados?

Arkansas, Tennessee, Illinois, Indiana, Alabama and Mississippi have had deaths as a result of several different tornados, which have also destroyed homes and businesses.

Arkansas and Tennessee are among the states hit hardest.

Residents of Wynne, Arkansas, a community of about 8,000 people 50 miles (80 kilometres) west of Memphis, Tennessee, woke on Saturday to find the high school’s roof shredded and its windows blown out.

Trees have been strewn across the ground, and homes have been blitzed, leaving debris including splintered furniture, clothing, insulation and toys scattered around the properties and on lawns.

Resident Ashley Macmillan said she, her husband and their children huddled with their dogs in a small bathroom as a tornado passed, “praying and saying goodbye to each other, because we thought we were dead.” A falling tree seriously damaged their home, but they were unhurt.

A person stands inside of a destroyed convenience store the day after a tornado hit Sullivan, Indiana, U.S. April 1, 2023. REUTERS/Jon Cherry
A person stands inside of a destroyed convenience store the day after a tornado hit Sullivan, Indiana, U.S. (Photo: Jon Cherry/Reuters)

“We could feel the house shaking, we could hear loud noises, dishes rattling. And then it just got calm,” she said.

In McNairy County, in Tennessee, nine people have been confirmed dead.

After visiting the county on Saturday, Governor Bill Lee said the storm capped the “worst” week of his time in the role, coming days after a school shooting in Nashville that killed six people including a family friend whose funeral he and his wife, Maria, attended earlier in the day.

On Twitter, Mr Lee said: “Maria and I are deeply saddened by the loss of life, significant injuries & damage across Tennessee.”

In the city of Memphis, a police spokesperson said late on Saturday that there were three deaths believed to be weather-related: two children and an adult who died when a tree fell on a house.

State officials have warned that severe weather conditions from Friday night are expected to return Tuesday.

How bad is the damage?

The tornados have caused havoc for towns and cities. A number of buildings in the Arkansas capital Little Rock have also been destroyed. Over two thousand buildings were in the path of the storm.

At least one person was killed in the city and more than 50 were hurt, some critically.

The storm has destroyed homes and trapped people in debris in Wynne. The state’s governor, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, said that the town saw “widespread damage” from a tornado.

In Belvidere, Illinois, the roof of a concert hall Apollo Theatre collapsed in where 260 people were inside, killing one person.

And in Crawford County, also in Illinois, three people were killed and eight injured when a tornado hit around New Hebron, said Bill Burke, the county board chair. About 60 to 100 families were displaced in the county.

What is the latest weather forecast?

Weather forecasts and weather models show that another (potentially significant) severe weather threat targets the Midwest, Mid-Mississippi Valley region on Tuesday.

The National Weather Service says there’s an enhanced risk of severe thunderstorms across much of northern Missouri and Southeastern Iowa into Central and Northern Illinois, as well as across parts of Northeastern Texas, southeastern Oklahoma, and much of Northwestern and Central Arkansas.

By admin