At least five dead as tornadoes lash Alabama and Georgia
First lady Jill Biden postponed a trip to Alabama planned for Friday because of the weather.
Tornadoes have roared across parts of western Georgia and Alabama, where at least five people died in twisters that wrecked homes, splintered trees and crumpled businesses.
Meteorologists said a large, dangerous tornado swept through metro Atlanta’s Coweta County around midnight on Friday, sparking a tornado emergency for the city of Newnan and surrounding communities. There were several reports of downed trees and power lines.
Newnan police asked residents to “get off the roads” in a Facebook post, explaining that emergency officials were surveying the area.
“It’s still dark so it’s hard to assess all of the damage but we believe we have 30 broken poles,” he said. “We serve about 10,000 customers and about half are without electricity right now.”
Mr McEntire said the damage from the storm was severe and it will “take several days, with the help from outside crews, to put the system together again”.
Newnan mayor Keith Brady said no fatalities were immediately reported.
The storm followed a series of tornadoes that ripped through Alabama on Thursday, including one that authorities said travelled roughly 100 miles across the state.
“Our hearts, our thoughts and our prayers go to the families, and we are going to do our best to let them know we love them,” Mr Wade said at an evening briefing.
Multiple twisters sprang from a “super cell” of storms that later moved into Georgia, said John De Block, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Birmingham, Alabama.
Vast areas of Shelby County near Birmingham — the state’s biggest city — were badly damaged.
Centreville mayor Mike Oakley told ABC 33/40 news that a local airport was hit. “We have airplanes torn apart like toys. We’ve got homes along here that are totally destroyed, trees down, power lines down. It’s pretty devastating.”
First lady Jill Biden postponed a trip to Birmingham and Jasper, Alabama, planned for Friday because of the weather, her office said in a news release.
“Thinking of everyone in Alabama and all of those impacted by the severe weather across the South tonight. My prayers are with the grieving families. Please stay safe,” she tweeted late on Thursday.
Earlier, Alabama governor Kay Ivey issued an emergency declaration for 46 counties, and officials opened shelters in and around Birmingham.
Other parts of the southern US were also affected, with dangerous thunderstorms and flooding concerns for parts of Tennessee, Kentucky and the Carolinas.
In addition to deaths in Alabama, Mississippi had a storm-related death on Wednesday. Ester Jarrell, 62, died in Wilkinson County when a large tree toppled over on to her mobile home after heavy rain soaked the ground, an official said.