Severe weather threat moves east after tornado-triggering storms struck Texas and Mississippi, leaving at least two dead

Severe weather threat moves east after tornado-triggering storms struck Texas and Mississippi, leaving at least two dead



CNN

The threat of severe weather is shifting to the Southeast and East coasts after violent tornado storms ripped through Texas and Mississippi, destroying homes and leaving at least two people dead.

A high school student in Natchez, Mississippi, died after a tree fell on a home, Adams County emergency officials said Saturday. According to Sheriff Bo Stallman, another person died in northern Brazoria County, Texas, where a tornado touched down in four different locations.

Crews to the south conducted searches and assessed the damage as severe storms headed toward the Southeast. Cities from northern Florida to the Carolinas could see damaging wind gusts, large hail and possible tornadoes on Sunday.

“Severe thunderstorms and heavy rains will affect most eastern states through Sunday,” the National Weather Service said.

According to the weather service, tornado warnings are in effect Sunday morning for parts of southeast Louisiana, as well as Alabama and parts of Florida and Tennessee.

Bystanders watch as first responders work on December 28 in Natchez, Mississippi.

Multiple tornado sightings were reported Saturday as millions of Americans in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas faced the threat of strong hurricanes.

Storm chaser video shows a violent, long-track tornado ripping through McCall Creek in southwest central Mississippi on Saturday. In Porter, Texas, drone footage shows several homes with torn roofs, splintered buildings and fallen trees.

More than 182,000 residents in Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Tennessee were without power as of Sunday morning, according to PowerOutage.us. Most of those outages were reported in Mississippi, where nearly 85,000 customers were without power as of 2 a.m. ET.

Severe weather caused a partial power outage at Jackson-Medgar Wiley Evers International Airport in Mississippi, leading to delays and cancellations, the airport said in a social media post. The airport said the power outage has now been resolved.

On Sunday, the severe storm will spread to the Southeast, the East Coast and parts of the Mid-Atlantic. The area includes the cities of Atlanta, Georgia and Charlotte and Raleigh, North Carolina.

“Run,” Anna Peterson told her husband after she heard the back door of their Brazoria County home fly open.

The couple hid in a closet with their puppies as the storm intensified, she told CNN affiliate KHOU.

“About two or three minutes later it was over and then we opened the front door to check and everything was gone,” she said.

The semi-trailer that had been secured on Peterson’s property had been blown into the neighboring property and destroyed.

Authorities say a tornado likely touched down near Porter Heights, Texas, on Saturday.

According to Sheriff Stallman, a tornado touched down in several different locations in a small area in Brazoria County and had a rapid impact.

“The damage was extremely devastating,” he said.

According to Manvel Mayor Dan Davis, officials in Brazoria County were working to accommodate teachers and students at Walt Disney Elementary School after there was storm damage there.

Davis shared a photo from inside the school in a Facebook post that shows significant damage to the school’s ceiling and debris scattered on the floor.

“Recovery efforts have begun across the region and I am grateful to live in a county where people truly care about each other,” Davis said. “Over the next few days, properties will be cleared, power will be restored and life will be rebuilt. Please continue to pray for everyone affected!”

A fire station in Montgomery County suffered significant damage after a storm hit the area.

Residents of Montgomery County, about 80 miles north of Brazoria County, are also recovering from a likely tornado in their community.

Things went from bad to worse for Bill Hustus as he told KHOU that high winds caused trees to fall on his home and destroy a home in his community.

“There was a two-story house there (across the street) that no longer exists,” he said.

Tornadoes occur significantly less often in the United States in December, with only about 40 on average – compared to the nearly 270 on average in May. This year, however, there were 1,783 tornado reports through December 27 – significantly higher than the average of 1,347 reports.

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