At least six people were killed in Autauga County, Ala., on Thursday, the sheriff’s office said, as hurricanes swept through the South, damaging homes and leaving tens of thousands of customers in swaths of Alabama. , Georgia and Mississippi lost power.
The National Weather Service said meteorologists were monitoring tornado reports across the affected area.
Officials said the threat of severe weather and tornadoes is expected to continue into the night, with two states declaring states of emergency Thursday night.
Alabama Governor Kay Ivey declared a state of emergency for six counties, including Autauga, Chambers, Coosa, Dallas, Elmore and Tallapoosa. “We are so used to brutal weather, but our people are resilient,” said Governor Ivey. said on Twitter, recorded six deaths.
The Governor of Georgia, Brian Kemp, also announced state of emergency.
Videos and photos emerged from across the South showing felled trees as well as damage to the house and other buildings. It was not immediately clear how many people across the South were injured or the extent of their injuries.
In Mississippi, the state’s emergency management agency shared a video on Twitter shows that a home in Monroe County was essentially razed. Other houses nearby had roof damage, with debris scattered in the area.
“That house was completely destroyed,” Malary White, a spokeswoman for the agency, said Thursday. Ms. White said more reports of damage were expected later as local officials continued to assess parts of the state.
Officials said the damage in Monroe County, northeast of Mississippi, was believed to have been caused by a tornado shortly after 7 a.m. local time.
Frank Pereira, a meteorologist with the Weather Service, said preliminary information suggests there may have been “multiple tornadoes,” multiple tornadoes occurring across Alabama.
After the storm passes, the agency will conduct “hurricane surveys” to determine if any tornadoes have occurred, he said.
As of Thursday night, there were 20 tornadoes from North Carolina to the Florida Panhandle, Mr. Pereira said. “In the next few hours, we will most likely see more tornado activity.”
As the storm system moved east on Thursday morning, it also brought severe weather conditions to parts of Alabama and Georgia.
Several severe thunderstorm warnings have been issued for the Atlanta area, including one for the area around Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, where Weather service has warned winds of up to 60 mph, quarter-sized hail and possible tornadoes. The airport was closed on Thursday afternoon because of thunderstorms in the area, according to Air Traffic Control System Command Center.
In Bibb County, Ala., the Weather Service warned on Twitter that a “massive and EXTREMELY DANGEROUS tornado” was moving through the area at 11:34 a.m. local time. Less than an hour later, the Weather Service warned residents in Dallas County, Ala.that a “large and extremely dangerous tornado” was moving through Selma.
Mayor’s Office in Selma said in a statement that the city had “suffered substantial damage from the tornado.”
The office urged residents to “please don’t walk on the street” and avoid downed power lines. “The city teams will be out as soon as possible to clean up,” it said.
At a news conference on Thursday night, officials in Selma said they had received no reports of deaths, but that several people were injured. A curfew will be in place from dusk to dawn across the city.
“This is a sad day in Selma and Dallas County,” said Jimmy Nunn, probate judge for Dallas County. “Stay at home and let the emergency team do what they need to do.”
Videos and photos from Selma that went viral on social media on Thursday showed damaged buildings, fallen trees and broken windows of vehicles.
The Weather Service’s Office in Birmingham, Ala., say on Twitter that there was “confirmed damage” in the city of Selma.
The outbreak of severe weather has prompted several tornado warnings to be issued across parts of Georgia and Alabama, including one at 12:53 p.m., when the Weather Service warned people in Autauga County , northwest of Montgomery, about the tornado emergency.
“This is a life-threatening situation,” Weather service said. “Take shelter immediately!!”
Gary Weaver, deputy director of the Autauga County Emergency Management Agency, said there have been reports of injuries and damage, including downed power lines, throughout the county. Weaver said his office had received reports of a number of injuries, but it was unclear how many people were injured or how serious they were.
“We don’t even know the extent of it yet,” Mr Weaver said of the damage.
Although there are some reports of tornadoes across Alabama, Georgia and Mississippi, their number and intensity have yet to be confirmed by the National Weather Service, which will send hurricane survey teams to affected areas within hours and days of the tornado. storm.
More than 37,000 customers in Alabama and more than 78,000 customers in Georgia were without power Thursday night, according to power outage.us, tracking power outages nationwide. It’s unclear if all of those blackouts were the result of severe weather moving through the South.
