The US Midwest region has faced over 100 tornadoes this weekend, with at least two killed and thousands left without power in Oklahoma.
DW
At least two people were killed in Holdenville, 80 miles (129 kilometers) from Oklahoma City, as, health authorities said on Sunday.
A four-month-old child was among the killed victims, and four other people were injured in Holdenville, a town of a population of 5,000 people.
“My prayers are with those who lost loved ones as tornadoes ripped through Oklahoma last night,” Governor Kevin Stitt said in a statement.
One hospital was damaged and a major highway at the border with Texas was closed “due to overturned vehicles and power lines across the highway,” said the Oklahoma Office of Emergency Management.
Dozens of houses were destroyed and tens of thousands of people were left without electricity across the state.
In Murray County, in Oklahoma’s south, authorities urged people to stay away from the city to clear the way for first responders. “Stay home and do not come to look,” the sheriff’s office said.
State of emergency in 12 Oklahoma counties
Governor Stitt declared a state of emergency in 12 counties hit by the, as crews worked to clear the debris and assess the damage.
Despite multiple storms, some parts of Oklahoma were suffering from drought.
“Several rounds of thunderstorms dumped excessive amounts of rain yesterday and early this morning. Unfortunately, far northwest Oklahoma missed out on the rain where moderate to severe drought is occurring,” an Oklahoma weather service said.
Storm watch in effect across Midwest
Severe storms and tornadoes have wreaked havoc across the Midwest since Friday.
On Friday alone, 78 tornadoes were reported, mostly in Nebraska and Iowa. Another 35 were reported on Saturday from northern Texas to Missouri.
As of Sunday 17:20 UTC, the National Weather Service had active flood watches and warnings for several states in the region, including Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri, Arkansas and Texas.
Although tornadoes are usual for the region in the spring, meteorologists say separate major outbreaks in succeeding days is.
fb/dj (AP, dpa, AFP)
