At least seven people have died and dozens more have been injured after severe thunderstorms, tornadoes and flooding swept through parts of Texas, Oklahoma and Louisiana on Wednesday and early Thursday.
Five people were killed by tornadoes in Oklahoma and Texas, while in Louisiana one person died in a storm and another drowned in floodwaters. The National Weather Service described the tornado that struck Onalaska, Texas, as 'extremely dangerous', killing three and injuring up to 30 people. Homes, businesses and infrastructure suffered significant damage.
In southern Oklahoma, a 'large and dangerous' tornado hit Marshall County, killing one person whose body was found a quarter-mile from a factory near the town of Madill. Employees were leaving as the twister struck, according to the county's emergency management chief. Other tornadoes in the region dropped hail the size of golf balls and baseballs.
Louisiana reported one woman killed in a severe storm in Rapides Parish, and a man drowned after accidentally falling into floodwaters in DeSoto Parish. Officials rescued others trapped in their homes. Sheriff Jayson Richardson described 'extreme flooding' in Mansfield, with water levels not seen in many years.
More than 100,000 homes across the US south were without power as of Thursday afternoon. Texas Governor Greg Abbott said state emergency management agencies are working with local officials to provide assistance. The National Weather Service warned that a storm system moving across the south-east could bring further heavy rain, flash flooding and severe thunderstorms.
The latest storms bring the 2020 US tornado death toll to 74, the highest since 2011, according to the Washington Post. Earlier this month, tornadoes and flooding killed 26 people in the same region, with as many as 60 tornadoes hitting Louisiana, Texas and Mississippi on 12 April.
