On Friday night, a rare, long-track tornado wreaked havoc throughout western Mississippi, killing at least 23 people, destroying structures, and knocking out electricity in thousands of homes.
The Mississippi emergency management Agency reported Saturday morning, “we can confirm 23 dead, scores injured, and 4 missing due to last night’s tornadoes.
“This morning a large number of local and state search and rescue teams are still at work. Several resources are present on the grounds to help individuals who have been impacted.
According to Lance Perrilloux of the National Weather Service, a tornado made landfall in rolling fork at 8 p.m. local time. Rolling Fork is located about an hour’s drive from Jackson, Mississippi.
Walker, who has been examining the devastation in his village, claimed that the damage and destruction are extensive. Many locals have been discovered locked in their homes, he continued and have been sent to hospitals while rescuers look for more survivors.
Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves declared a state of emergency in the affected areas.
Perrilloux characterised the tornado as “extremely rare” because it covered a total area of about 170 kilometres and persisted for more than an hour.
Given its endurance and ferocity over time, he told NPR, “This is one of the more rare tornadoes that we’ve seen in documented Mississippi history.”
Another death in Silver City has been verified by Mississippi Highway Patril officer Jose Watson in a Facebook live video.
As of Saturday morning more than 81,000 customer has lost power in Mississippi, Alabama and Tennessee, according to powerOutage.us.
