Death, Destruction As Tornadoes Rip Across Middle America

Washington Post:

From Iowa, to Illinois, to Arkansas a violent storm system spawned dozens of tornadoes, leaving death and destruction, scattering debris and lives.

At least 10 people have been killed after severe weather and tornadoes tore through parts of Indiana, Arkansas and Illinois and storms barreled across the central United States, leaving more than 200,000 households without power.

More than 60 tornado reports across several states were recorded by the National Weather Service’s Storm Prediction Center on Friday and Saturday.

A “large and destructive tornado” struck Little Rock and elsewhere in Arkansas on Friday afternoon, ripping through homes, state officials said.

LaTresha Woodruff, a spokeswoman for the Arkansas Department of Emergency Management, said four people had been killed in Cross County. In Wynne, pictures showed that neighborhoods and the town’s high school had sustained extensive damage, according to coroner Miles J. Kimble and a spokesperson for the Arkansas Division of Emergency Management.

There was one confirmed fatality in North Little Rock, Pulaski County spokeswoman Madeline Roberts said, adding that more than 50 people had been hospitalized and that there was “extensive damage” in the county.

Three fatalities were confirmed in Sullivan County, Ind., Sgt. Matt Ames with the Indiana State Police said early Saturday, adding that houses had been destroyed and several power lines were down. Search and rescue teams were waiting for daylight to resume operations in the area, he said.

In Belvidere, Ill., one person died and 28 others were injured when the roof of the Apollo Theatre collapsed after a storm swept through the area, the fire department said Friday. A Belvidere resident told The Washington Post that the scene was a “catastrophe.”

Shawn Schadle, the city’s fire chief, said in a news briefing that about 260 people were at the venue. Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D) said late Friday that officials were “closely monitoring” the disaster and urged residents to take shelter and to monitor guidance from all local authorities.

The Mississippi Emergency Management Agency confirmed one death on Saturday morning, saying on Twitter that “severe weather” struck Pontotoc County the night before.