TWISTER TERROR
Winter storm – Elderly couple among 11 dead after trailer blown 200ft as tornadoes devastate the South
TORNADOES across the South have killed at at least 11 people - including an elderly couple - as the wicked weather continues.
The death toll continued to rise on Saturday as high winds, tornadoes and rainfall battered large areas in Texas, Alabama, Louisiana and Oklahoma, with one fatality reported in Iowa.
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Two emergency workers died and one remains critically injured in Lubbock, Texas, today after they were hit by a vehicle at the scene of a traffic accident in icy conditions, officials said.
Police Officer Nicholas Reyna, 27, died at the scene while Firefighter Lt. David Hill, 39, was taken to a local hospital where he later died.
Firefighter Matthew Dawson, 30, was hospitalized in critical condition as Lubbock Police Chief Floyd Mitchell called it an "extremely tragic day" for the city.
Yesterday, an elderly couple’s home was blown 200 feet from its foundations by severe wind late, said the Bossier Parish Sheriff's Office in Louisiana.
Another Texan was killed last night when a car flipped into a creek in Dallas as severe thunderstorms ripped through the countryside.
Randall Hyatt, 58, of Wardville, drowned near Kiowa, Oklahoma, after he was swept away in floodwaters, the Oklahoma Highway Patrol said Saturday.
The Iowa State Patrol said roads were covered with ice early Saturday when a semitrailer on Interstate 80 overturned, killing a passenger in the truck east of Iowa City.
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The other five deaths occurred today, including in neighboring Caddo Parish, where an elderly man died when a tree fell on his house about 1.15 am.
A 44-year-old man was killed about 12.10 am when a tree fell on his house in the Gravel Ridge community of Nacogdoches County, Texas.
Three people were killed in Alabama, in the Carrollton area, about 75 miles southwest of Birmingham in the afternoon.
The tornadoes have wrecked homes in Arkansas, Missouri, Oklahoma and 19 million people are still at risk from the 80mph hurricane-force winds.
Louisiana and Mississippi had more than 54,000 power outages while Arkansas reported nearly 42,000 on Saturday morning, mostly in the southeastern part of the state.
[An] extremely tragic day.
Lubbock Police Chief Floyd Mitchell
In Oklahoma and Arkansas of several highways were closed due to flooding.
The storm brought the threat of ice and snow to the Chicago area, prompted the cancellation of about 1,000 flights Saturday at Chicago’s two main airports.
The city’s Department of Aviation’s online flight-tracking website showed that as of 10:30 a.m. Saturday about 950 cancellations were reported at O’Hare International Airport and more than 50 at Midway International Airport.
Southwestern Electric Power Co. reported nearly 5,000 customers in East Texas were without power Saturday morning.
The National Storm Prediction centre said the entire weekend will be dominated by furious downpours, and widespread flash flooding as the system is not expected to slow down anytime soon.
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The area affected included the major Texas cities of Dallas, Houston and Austin.
Earlier in the afternoon, a tornado destroyed two homes near Fair Play, Missouri, about 35 miles northwest of Springfield.
The Missouri State Highway Patrol said no injuries were reported.
Shortly before 3 pm, a tornado stripped the shingles from the roof of a home near Tahlequah, Oklahoma, about 60 miles southeast of Tulsa.
No injuries were reported there either.
The NWS also said a "large and extremely dangerous tornado" was speeding through parts of Logan County, Arkansas last night.
IN THE CROSSHAIRS
Before the storms roared in, Dallas' Office of Emergency Management asked residents to bring in pets, outdoor furniture, grills, and anything else that could be caught up in high winds to reduce the risk of flying debris."
Matt Hemingway, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service said: "We're pretty much right in the cross-hairs.
"Damaging winds our are biggest concern because of the widespread nature of that threat, with tornadoes not far behind that.
"We could see some very strong tornadoes - possibly those that may stay on the ground for some time - not just the brief spin-up tornadoes."
Tornado watches Friday night covered parts of eastern Texas, northwestern Louisiana, southern Missouri and much of Arkansas.
In Texas, Gov. Greg Abbott said boats, helicopters, medical and rescue teams had been placed on standby in case they are needed.
I ask that all Texans keep those in the storm's path and all of Texas' first responders in their prayers as they deal with the effects of this storm," Abbott said in a statement.
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Many streams already are at or near flood levels because of earlier storms, and heavy rains could lead to flash flooding across the region, forecasters said.
Parts of Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Mississippi, Tennessee, Kentucky, Missouri, Illinois and Indiana were under flash flood watches on Friday in anticipation of the drenching rains.
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