At least 17 people have been reportedly killed in a powerful storm across the United States.
Missouri officials say three more people died in Arkansas, and three more people died in a car accident during a Texas sandstorm on Friday, where 11 people died.
Approximately 138 million people in central and southern U.S. states are at risk of severe weather.
Tornado warnings are being made in parts of Illinois, Missouri, Arkansas, Mississippi, Indiana and Kentucky.
We destroyed a house in Florisant, Missouri. Photo: Reuters
Sky News weather producer Joanna Robinson said the intense storm continued on Saturday, leading to more tornadoes, with forecasts suggesting “many important tornadoes – some long trajectories and potentially violent.”
“We currently have a big tornado moving through Taylorsville, Mississippi,” she said. “Today is likely to be worse than yesterday.”
Missouri, where a state of emergency was declared Friday, is projected to reach EF2 on the tornado strength scale.
The U.S. Weather Service said the size of the baseball was reported in Christian County.
Up to six inches of snow are expected in western Minnesota and the Far East of South Dakota, the National Weather Service said.
The remains of the destroyed home in Florisant, Missouri. Photo: Reuters
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Written in X, the Missouri State Highway patrol said two people died in Bakersfield, Ozark County, and several others were injured.
Authorities told Sky’s US Partner Network NBC News that he died after being hit by a severe storm in Butler County on the Arkansas border in Missouri.
Butler County Coroner Jim Akers said the man and his wife were sleeping when the tornado came. The rescuer was able to pull the woman out of the fragments, but he couldn’t save the man.
“I couldn’t recognize it being a home. It’s just a field of debris,” he explained the scene, saying. “The floor was upside down. I was walking along the wall.”
County officials added that rescue operations are underway and the number of deaths there could be increased.
Large vehicles overturned throughout the state are also shown.
Debris covers the roads amidst a storm in Webster County, Missouri. Photo: AP
Debris flies in Webster County, Missouri. Photo: AP
The tornado destroyed a home in Florisant, Missouri. Photo: Reuters
The truck collapses in a sandstorm
Three people were killed in a car accident caused by a sandstorm on Friday in Amarillo, Texas, according to the state’s public safety department.
One of the deaths occurred after three trucks collided with four other vehicles in Palmer County, according to Bovina’s fire chief Cesar Marquez. The other occurred after stacking an estimated 38 cars.
“This is the worst I’ve ever seen,” said Sergeant Cindy Berkley, of the Public Safety Department, calling his visibility near zero a nightmare. “We couldn’t say they were all together until the dust settled down.”
One scene of a fatal crash fall in Austin, Texas on Friday. Photo: AP
A crash scene in Austin, Texas. Photo: AP
The wind speeds in northern Texas have reached 62 mph, according to the National Weather Service.
Dramatic video from across the state – Oklahoma – shows a huge track falling on their side with the strength of the dust storm.
Authorities say the three deaths occurred overnight in Independent County, Arkansas, with 29 more injured in eight different counties.
Extreme weather has destroyed buildings, breached power sources, and caused at least 100 wildfires in multiple states.
The Southern Plains fire is likely to spread rapidly amid warm climates and strong winds, with evacuation of some communities in Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri and New Mexico.
More than 400,000 households in the Midwest and Southern states do not provide electricity, according to the monitoring website Poweroutage.us.
Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe on Friday called on residents after implementing emergency measures. “We urge all Missouri people to stay vigilant, monitor the weather forecast and follow official warnings.”
