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The town of Rolling Fork has been decimated after a devastating tornado tore through parts of the South overnight, leaving at least 23 people dead and four missing, according to emergency officials.
Many remained trapped under rubble on Saturday morning as a number of towns in Mississippi and Alabama took direct hits from the powerful storm.
The rural towns of Silver City and Rolling Fork, Mississippi reported destruction as a reportedly “mile-wide” tornado swept northeast at 70mph without weakening, racing towards Alabama through towns including Winona and Amory late on Friday. The massive supercell storm also brought hail the size of golf balls.
Rolling Fork mayor Eldridge Walker told CNN that his “city is gone” after many buildings and homes were obliterated by the storm.
“To protect your life, TAKE COVER NOW!” was the warning from the National Weather Service.
Cornel Knight said that he, his wife and their three-year-old daughter were at a relative’s home in Rolling Fork when the tornado struck. He said the sky was dark but “you could see the direction from every transformer that blew”, The Associated Press reported.
He said that it was “eerily quiet” as that happened. Mr Knight said he watched from a doorway until the tornado was, he estimated, less than a mile away. Then he told everyone in the house to take cover in a hallway.
He said the tornado struck another relative’s home across a wide corn field from where he was located. A wall in that home collapsed and trapped several people inside.
Rolling Fork mayor Eldridge Walker said he was unable to get out of his damaged home soon after the tornado hit because power lines were down. He said emergency responders were trying to take injured people to hospital. He did not immediately know how many people had been hurt.
The Sharkey-Issaquena Community Hospital in Rolling Fork was also damaged, WAPT reported.
A total of 23 fatalities were reported by the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency as daylight broke on Saturday.
Tens of thousands of people are without power in both Mississippi and Alabama, according to utility tracker, Poweroutage.us.
Twitter user Stephanie Cox posted a video on Twitter showing overturned vehicles and blown-down trees caused by the storm.
She tweeted: “Absolutely unreal damage in Rolling Fork . What a wild night please keep all these towns in your thoughts!”
Mississippi governor Tate Reeves said in a Twitter post that search and rescue teams had been deployed.
This article is being updated. Additional reporting from AP
