April 28, 2014 by Tim Talley and Christina Huynh, THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
MAYFLOWER, Ark. – A tornado system ripped through the central and southern United States on Sunday, leaving at least 17 dead in a violent start to this year’s storm season, officials said.
An Arkansas state agency reported that 16 deaths have been confirmed in that state. A separate tornado from the same storm system killed one person in Oklahoma.
The large tornado outside Little Rock, Arkansas, stayed on the ground as it moved northeastward for at least 50 kilometres.
Emergency workers and volunteers went door-to-door to look for victims. Law enforcement officers checked the damaged and toppled 18-wheelers, cars and trucks on a stretch of Interstate 40, a major thoroughfare in and out of the state’s capital.
“It turned pitch black,” said Mark Ausbrooks, who was at his parents’ home when the storm arrived. “I ran and got pillows to put over our heads and … all hell broke loose.”
“My parents’ home, it’s gone completely,” he said.
Downtown #Vilonia @FOX16News @KARK4News #ARWX #ARNews pic.twitter.com/X0XlQ5K9zN
— Pat Walker (@PatWalkerWX) April 28, 2014
Tornadoes also touched down in Nebraska, Iowa, Missouri and Kansas, where dozens of homes in Baxter Springs were destroyed. Twenty-five people were injured and one person died, but it wasn’t clear if the death was related to the storm, said Kari West, a spokeswoman for the Southeast Kansas Incident Management Team.
Forecasters had warned for days that violent weather would strike over the weekend.
In Arkansas, Pulaski County Sheriff’s Lt. Carl Minden said three people were killed when a tornado destroyed a home west of Little Rock. Minden said several others were injured at the scene.
Mayfair, Ark pic.twitter.com/nvWW2qZQTj
— devonmsayers (@devonmsayers) April 28, 2014
”I’m standing on the foundation of the house now. It’s totally gone,” Minden told The Associated Press by phone.
In Oklahoma, Ottawa County Emergency Management director Joe Dan Morgan said Quapaw, which has about 900 residents, was heavily damaged.
“Looks like about half of town got extensive damage as well as the fire department,” Morgan said.
Authorities earlier had said two were killed in Quapaw. Sheriff’s dispatcher Kelli Soechs declined to explain the discrepancy.
Six people were treated for tornado-related injuries at Baptist Regional Health Center, said hospital spokeswoman Kristie Wallace.
The Missouri Highway Patrol reported a tractor-trailer was blown onto its side on Interstate 70. No one was injured.
PHOTOS: A tornado destroyed 60 to 70 homes and injured 25 in Baxter Springs, Kansas. More: http://t.co/AJpLCI8QWl pic.twitter.com/HvoqLcqbwC
— The Boston Globe (@BostonGlobe) April 28, 2014
An incredible image of the Kansas tornado @41ActionNews #kcwx pic.twitter.com/0Wz8OYRmmr
— Mike Francis (@MikeFrancisWX) April 28, 2014
More damage from Mayfair, Ark pic.twitter.com/C5FSQODSRQ
— devonmsayers (@devonmsayers) April 28, 2014
How strong were these tornadic winds? Three big RVs wrapped around a twisted I-40 billboard in Mayflower, AR. pic.twitter.com/5Rx5fPuW9k
— Mike Seidel (@mikeseidel) April 28, 2014
BREAKING: ARK: Dept. of Emergency Crews Responding to Multiple Fatality Reports in Faulkner & White counties pic.twitter.com/fUfUhuWSAc
— Breaking911 (@Breaking911) April 28, 2014
PICTURE: Home in the middle of a street from earlier #tornado in Baxter Springs, #KS via @NewsOn6 #kswx pic.twitter.com/ywoEk2h700
— Johnny Kelly (@stormchaser4850) April 28, 2014
The damage in mayflower is horrible pic.twitter.com/5wi76co8mg
— Garrett Johnson (@Garrett_J19) April 28, 2014
Shows damage in Mayflower from @nlrweatherman: RT MAJOR DAMAGE and injuries pic.twitter.com/xqoShdFXuV
— KATV News (@KATVNews) April 28, 2014
Tornado in Vilonia pic.twitter.com/j0zhrxZqv5
— virginia millwood (@mlwdgrl1975) April 28, 2014
As of 9:30pm, there have been 27 total tornado reports so far today in 6 states. pic.twitter.com/ZCW0x3fuUP
— Eric Holthaus (@EricHolthaus) April 28, 2014
Explaining how tornadoes form—and how they die: http://t.co/5UgZdE721s
— National Geographic (@NatGeo) April 28, 2014
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