‘Mile-wide’ tornado wipes out town and kills at least 26 in Alabama, Mississippi

Mississippi officials announced Saturday afternoon that the number of fatalities in the state had risen by two following the devastating tornadoes that touched down overnight.

“At this time the death toll has risen to 25 and dozens of others are injured,” the Mississippi Emergency Magement Agency said in an update. “The fatalities are reported in Sharkey, Humphreys, Carroll, and Monroe counties. Four people reported missing overnight have now been accounted for.”

Another storm-related death was confirmed across the border in Alabama.

Multiple state agencies and partners continued to work on response and recovery efforts in both states.

Strong winds and power outages were plaguing states further north and east of the states affected by the Friday night tornadoes.

More than 125,000 Ohio customer were without power on Saturday afternoon, reported WCMH. More than 50,000 remained without power in Alabama, Tennessee and Kentucky, while nearly 60,000 West Virginians and 36,000 Pennsylvania residents lost electricity, according to PowerOutage.us.

Parts of far eastern Louisiana, souther/central Mississippi and southern/central Alabama remained under “an enhanced risk of severe thunderstorms, according to the National Weather Service.

Mississippi authorities, meanwhile, were offering safety advice for residents recovering after the storm, including a boil water notice, chainsaw and generator safety tips and reminders to avoid downed power lines. The Mississippi Emergency Management Agency also posted a tweet urging caution when walking through debris as upturned nails present a danger.

The Mississippi governor on Saturday confirmed the state has submitted its “major disaster declaration” as he toured devastated areas.

“The scale of the damage and loss is evident everywhere affected today,” Gov. Tate Reeves tweeted. “Homes, businesses … entire communities. Respond, Recover, Rebuild together. That is the mission.”

He also posted photos of recovery efforts already underway.

“The courage and resilience of the people of Silver City was on full display,” he tweeted. “Emergency operators are working to respond, and we will be there for the recovery and rebuilding as we get beyond today. Pure strength and will in the face of heartbreaking loss.”

Animal shelters were among the structures devastated during this weekend’s tornadoes, though one Mississippi woman assisting relief efforts in Rolling Fork described a happy discovery.

“The animal shelter was hit, but three dogs survived,” she told the Clarion Ledger. “I don’t know how. To find a live dog was unbelievable. It’s just unreal.”

Nearly 200 miles away in Amory, residents were also appealing for help for the local humane society, which was “severely damaged,” one volunteer told The Independent on Saturday.

The shelter posted numbers for volunteers that pet owners could call to help locate missing animals.

Debris from the fatal Mississippi tornadoes appears to have travelled more than 100 miles away, according to reports.

Musician Andrew Bryant tweeted a photo of a check from Rolling Fork on Saturday that he said was found in a relative’s yard more than 100 miles away.

“My cousin found this in her yard in Big Creek, MS. 133 miles from Rolling Fork,” he wrote, before tweeting a cartoon picturing two people hugging amidst debris with the words “Prayers for Mississippi.”

The Mississippi Department of Transportation continued to report significant amounts of debris blocking roads, the Clarion Ledger reported on Saturday.

Preliminary information based on estimates from storm reports and radar data indicate the tornado was on the ground for more than an hour and traveled at least 170 miles, a National Weather Service meteorologist told The Associated Press.

Lance Perilloux, who works for the NWS in Mississippi, made the comments as officials continued to survey the damage on the ground. Entire sections of towns were wiped out; in hard-hit Rolling Fork, trees were stripped of their branches and cars were flipped on their sides on Saturday — while the occasional home could be soon still upright and undamaged, AP reported.

One town resident, Sheddrick Bell sheltered in a closet with his partner and two daughters for 15 minutes as the tornado barreled through, he told AP — his partner praying loudly as his children cried nonstop.

“I was just thinking, ‘If I can still open my eyes and move around, I’m good,’” he said.

The Mississippi tornado was the state’s deadliest in more than a decade and possibly more than half a century, according to local reports.

At least 23 people have been confirmed dead throughout the state, and that number was expected to rise, authorities said Saturday — making it “at least the deadliest tornado to hit Mississippi since 2011, and potentially the deadliest in more than 50 years,” the Clarion Ledger reports.

President Biden tweeted that he’d spoken with FEMA administrator Deanne Criswell, who he said “has already deployed emergency response personnel and resources to support search-and-rescue and assess the damage.”

“We will do everything we can to help,” he tweeted. “We will work together to deliver the support you need to recover, for as long as it takes.”

President Joe Biden on Saturday offered his support and sympathy for the Southern residents affected by this weekend’s devastating tornadoes.

At least 23 people were killed, dozens injured and more missing throughout Mississippi as crews worked to assess the damage and death toll; one death had been reported Saturday in Alabama. The Mississippi Emergency Management Agency tweeted Saturday morning: “Unfortunately, these numbers are expected to change.”

“Jill and I are praying for those who have lost loved ones in the devastating tornadoes in Mississippi and those whose loved ones are missing,” President Biden tweeted, adding that he’d spoken with Mississippi Governor Tate Reeves as well as other state representatives “to express my condolences and offer full federal support.”

Governor Reeves declared a state of emergency for the areas affected, with Carroll, Humphreys, Monroe and Sharkey counties all reporting deaths.

“I just spoke with President Biden about the deadly tornados we faced overnight. He assured us FEMA would be there to support our response,” the governor tweeted Saturday. “The flood of support from governors, businesses, charities, and federal admin has been tremendous—matches the community here on the ground.”

The head of FEMA on Saturday posted that the agency had been in touch with the governor of Mississippi regarding the devastation throughout the state following the brutal storm.

“I just spoke to @tatereeves about the devastating tornadoes in Mississippi and how @FEMA can help the communities impacted,” Deanne Criswell tweeted. “Our thoughts are with the people of Mississippi who are dealing with this terrible trauma.”

One Mississippi woman, Wonder Bolden, was holding her granddaughter as she spoke to AP while standing outside the remnants of her mother’s now-leveled mobile home in Rolling Forkon Saturday.

“There’s nothing left,” the 44-year-old hospice worker told AP, looking out at the car that had landed on top of a diner that used to be 60 feet away from her driveway. “There’s just the breeze that’s running, going through — just nothing.”

She said the family had spent the morning digging through debris, searching for coins her mother had stowed away, and her belongings of her father, who passed away around 25 years ago — but hadn’t been able to come up with much.

Rolling Fork is in Sharkey County, which has been particularly hard hit. The sheriff’s office reported gas leaks and trapped residents, while some law enforcement units were also unaccounted for, the Vicksburg News reported.

Both a Mississippi meteorologist and the state’s governor asked for prayers amid the devastating weekend storm that wove a 100-mile fatal path.

Matt Laubhan, chief meteorologist for local network WTVA, was presenting live as the tornadoes were developing, telling viewers that, as much as they ‘trust him’, he wasn’t sure how the storm would pan out.

“Argh man, dear Jesus please help them, amen”, he prayed, as updates of the tornado’s movements came in.

“I tell you where it goes and some of you are like ‘that’s where it’s going to go,’ but the reality is this could be changing directions.”

On Saturday, as the breadth of destruction became apparent and at least 23 were confirmed dead, Governor Tate Reeves tweeted: “The loss will be felt in these towns forever.

“Please pray for God’s hand to be over all who lost family and friends.”