Rescue efforts are still underway with at least four people missing after being hit by severe weather
At least 23 people have died after a devastating combination of tornados and storms battered Mississippi on Friday night, local officials said on Saturday. Dozens more are injured and four people have been reported missing, while local authorities said the town of Rolling Fork, Mississippi is “gone.”
A tornado moving at 50 miles per hour (80.46 km/h) hit Silver City and Rolling Fork on Friday night, almost completely leveling the latter. Rolling Fork Mayor Eldridge Walker lamented that his “city is gone” while promising residents that rescue efforts were underway and vowing to rebuild.
Video and images of the aftermath posted to social media show scenes of total devastation, with large areas completely reduced to scraps and rubble, and cars and trucks torn up and deposited on top of what were once buildings.
There were at least eleven tornado reports in Mississippi and Alabama over a 24-hour period, though it was unclear whether they all involved the same tornado that laid waste to Rolling Fork and Silver City. Locals were trapped in their homes as furniture, house materials, and other massive debris were tossed into the air, and many are feared to be still trapped.
Deaths were reported across Sharkey, Humphreys, Carroll, and Monroe counties in Mississippi and confirmed by state officials, while a team from the Federal Emergency Management Administration has been sent to the state. Governor Tate Reeves activated additional emergency personnel to help in the rescue effort on Friday.
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By Saturday morning, the storms had moved toward Tennessee, leaving a trail of devastation. Power outages were reported in over 83,000 homes in three states, with 47,000 in Tennessee alone, though some of those had electricity restored by the afternoon according to PowerOutage.us.
Another round of storms is expected to hit the area on Sunday, with heavy winds, tornadoes, and hail as well as rain predicted in Montgomery, Alabama; Jackson, Mississippi; and Columbus and Macon, Georgia.
