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35 killed, 200 injured or missing in US storms

At least 35 people died and over 200 went missing or were injured as tornadoes and thunderstorms swept across more than a dozen states in the United States on Tuesday.

Rescue workers sifting through the wreckage pulled survivors out in heavy rains and looked for their relatives while trying to retrieve whatever they could from the rubble.

The toll may rise when rescue workers reach people cut off by the storms. This rare phenomenon occurred on Monday when about 70 tornadoes lashed the states in the South, East and Midwest.

These were the deadliest storms since the death of 44 people in Oklahoma and Kansas when tornadoes hit those states in May 1999.

Tennessee was the hardest hit this time, with more than 16 persons killed and 55 injured. Ten were reported killed in Alabama and five in Ohio.

While Georgia, Indiana, Mississippi, and North Carolina reported heavy damage, cities and towns many kilometres apart were also destroyed. The storms also strained power lines. More storms may be in the offing, but their severity is likely to be less.

PTI

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