Sun 26 March 2023:
Search and rescue efforts are continuing in Mississippi, after a deadly tornado hit the US state.
At least 25 people have died in the state, and one in Alabama, with dozens more left injured by Friday’s tornado.
The storms devastated several rural towns, with Rolling Fork in western Sharkey County, almost completely wiped out.
The American Red Cross moved into a National Guard building less than 24 hours after the tornado struck Friday night, killing at least 25 people in the community of 2,000.
An ambulance is parked at the entrance of a room being used as an infirmary and, through the back door, boxes full of cereal bars and baby diapers keep arriving.
“We’re trying to give people a place to stay overnight with food and medical support so they can just have a place to lay their heads, because they’ve lost everything,” said John Brown, a Red Cross official for Alabama and Mississippi.
The city is “like a war zone,” he said. “It looks like a bomb went off.”
Whether or not residents choose to stay in the town center, they will at least have access to information and food and regain some strength, Brown said.
Mississippi state governor Tate Reeves, has declared a state of emergency, to help respond to the damage.
US President Joe Biden also described the images coming out of Mississippi, as “heartbreaking”, and said the federal government would “do everything we can to help”.
“We will be there as long as it takes. We will work together to deliver the support you need to recover.”
Mississippi officials set up three emergency shelters, including at the National Guard Armory in Rolling Fork. Federal Emergency Management Agency Director Deanne Criswell will travel to Mississippi on Sunday, the White House said.
The storm system which ripped through Mississippi produced a tornado, that has caused catastrophic damage to communities across the state. The biggest twister obliterated dozens of buildings in several small towns, flipping cars on their sides and toppling power lines.
More storms are predicted to hit, parts of Alabama and Georgia early on Sunday and potentially bring large hail.
About 26,000 customers remained without power as of Saturday evening in Mississippi, Alabama and Tennessee due to the storm, according to the website PowerOutage.us.
At least 24 reports of tornadoes, stretching from western Mississippi into Alabama, were issued to the National Weather Service on Friday night and into Saturday morning by storm chasers and observers.
SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES
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