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At Least 15 Die as Tornadoes Sweep Southeast At Least 16 Die as Tornadoes Sweep Southeast
(about 3 hours later)
ATLANTA — At least 15 people were killed and 43 more injured in Georgia and Mississippi after severe weather on Saturday unleashed a swarm of tornadoes in the Southeast. ATLANTA — At least 16 people were killed and 43 more injured in Georgia and Mississippi after thunderstorms and tornadoes roared through the South this weekend, leaving some things standing and some things fallen, some lives whole and others blown to bits.
Catherine Howden, a spokeswoman for Georgia’s emergency management agency, confirmed that there had been 11 storm-related deaths, and 23 people injured, in central and southern parts of the state. She said there had been up to 20 reports of tornadoes. Charles McDowell, the pastor of Barney United Methodist Church in Barney, Ga., was safe at his home on Sunday in nearby Valdosta. So was the modest church where he preaches to his flock of a few dozen people.
Ms. Howden said that the severe weather in Georgia continued to take a toll and that it was not expected to stop until late Sunday night. The state’s governor, Nathan Deal, declared a state of emergency on Sunday for seven south-central Georgia counties: Atkinson, Berrien, Brooks, Colquitt, Cook, Lowndes and Thomas. But many of his church members were suffering, their homes damaged, including roofs torn away, and their electricity off. There was little for Mr. McDowell to do but to try to reach out to them on their cellphones.
“These storms have devastated communities and homes in South Central Georgia, and the state is making all resources available to the impacted areas,” Mr. Deal said in a statement. He said that he was prepared to expand or extend the emergency declaration, and that the state was likely to seek help from the federal government. “As a church,” Mr. McDowell said, “we’re praying for each other.”
On Sunday afternoon, during a ceremony held to swear in White House senior staff members, President Trump said he had spoken with Mr. Deal, and mentioned Florida and Alabama as other states that had been affected. Catherine Howden, a spokeswoman for Georgia’s emergency management agency, said 12 people had died and 23 more had been injured in central and southern parts of the state because of the storm. She said there had been up to 20 reports of tornadoes.
Mr. Trump said that he had expressed to Mr. Deal “our sincere condolences for the lives taken” and said that “we’ll be helping out the state of Georgia.” He added that he planned to reach out to Florida’s governor, Rick Scott. Gov. Nathan Deal declared a state of emergency on Sunday for seven counties: Atkinson, Berrien, Brooks, Colquitt, Cook, Lowndes and Thomas.
George Wetzel, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Peachtree City, Ga., said that in the last three days a strong low-pressure system had moved east across the Southern states, which had been unseasonably warm in recent days, with moisture moving north from the Gulf of Mexico. “These storms have devastated communities and homes in south-central Georgia, and the state is making all resources available to the impacted areas,” Mr. Deal said in a statement. He said that he was prepared to expand or extend the emergency declaration, and that the state was likely to seek help from the federal government.
A statement on the website of Mississippi’s emergency agency said that a tornado there had caused extensive damage in the southern part of the state, killing at least four people and injuring more than 20. Gov. Phil Bryant called for a state of emergency as power lines and debris littered Mississippi’s roads. On Sunday afternoon, during a ceremony to swear in White House senior staff members, President Trump said he had spoken with Mr. Deal, and mentioned Florida and Alabama as other states that had been affected by storms.
In Georgia, an intense round of thunderstorms that started Saturday morning produced a number of tornadoes, and a second round overnight Saturday produced flooding rains, including more than six inches that fell in a 24-hour period just east of Albany. Mr. Trump said that he had expressed to Mr. Deal “our sincere condolences for the lives taken” and that “we’ll be helping out the state of Georgia.” He added that he planned to reach out to Florida’s governor, Rick Scott.
A third wave of storms had begun in some parts of the state on Sunday morning and were expected to last into the late afternoon. George Wetzel, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Peachtree City, Ga., said that in the past three days, a strong low-pressure system had moved east across the South, which had been unseasonably warm in recent days, with moisture moving north from the Gulf of Mexico.
On Sunday morning in Adel, Ga., Jeff Lane, a county commissioner, was surveying the wreckage at the Sunshine Acres trailer park, where he said that all of the county’s eight deaths had occurred. He said that search and rescue crews were still combing through the community. Photographs of the park showed an open field surrounded by thin trees, strewn with splintered wood, scraps of metal sheeting and trashed cars. A statement on the website of Mississippi’s emergency agency said a tornado had caused extensive damage in the southern part of the state early Saturday, killing at least four people in or near Hattiesburg and injuring more than 20 others. Gov. Phil Bryant called for a state of emergency as power lines and debris littered roads.
In Georgia, an intense round of thunderstorms that started on Saturday morning produced a number of tornadoes, and a second round overnight produced flooding rains, including more than six inches that fell in 24 hours just east of Albany.
A third wave of storms began in some parts of the state early Sunday.
On Sunday morning in Adel, Jeff Lane, a county commissioner, was surveying the wreckage at the Sunshine Acres trailer park, where he said all eight deaths in the county had occurred. He said search and rescue crews were still making their way through the community. Photographs of the trailer park showed an open field surrounded by thin trees, strewn with splintered wood, scraps of metal sheeting and destroyed cars.
“It’s like a bomb had been dropped out here, at ground level,” Mr. Lane said in a telephone interview. “You’ve got mobile-home frames that look like spaghetti noodles. We’ve tried to evacuate as many as we can. But it’s raining real hard, and we’re getting ready to start another round of storms.”“It’s like a bomb had been dropped out here, at ground level,” Mr. Lane said in a telephone interview. “You’ve got mobile-home frames that look like spaghetti noodles. We’ve tried to evacuate as many as we can. But it’s raining real hard, and we’re getting ready to start another round of storms.”
Charles McDowell, the pastor of Barney United Methodist Church in Barney, Ga., a small community known for its peach crop, said that the electricity was out in the area, and that services had been canceled on Sunday morning. “A lot of my people have physical damage,” he said. “Some of the roofs are ripped off, trees are down, and of course the power is off now.” Mr. McDowell, the pastor in Barney, Ga., a small community known for its peaches, said he was forced to cancel Sunday services because of the power failures — and because the dangerous storms had not abated. “A lot of my people have physical damage,” he said. “Some of the roofs are ripped off, trees are down, and of course the power is off now.”
The weather also caused damage in parts of Alabama, Louisiana and Texas, though information on whether anyone had been killed or injured in those states was not immediately available on Sunday, which was expected to be another dangerous day in the South. The weather also caused damage in parts of Alabama, Louisiana and Texas, though information on whether anyone had been killed or injured in those states was not immediately available on Sunday.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has issued a “high risk” severe weather outlook for Georgia and parts of Alabama and Florida. Since Saturday morning, 30 reports of tornadoes were recorded in Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana and Mississippi, according to the agency. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration issued a “high risk” severe weather outlook for Georgia and parts of Alabama and Florida. Since Saturday morning, 30 reports of tornadoes were recorded in Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana and Mississippi, the agency said.
Mr. McDowell spoke on the phone from his home in Valdosta, about 20 miles from Barney, on Sunday morning. He had received reports that his modest country church, with its white vinyl siding, had not been damaged. But with the latest round of powerful storms ginning up, he said he would remain hunkered down at home. In the meantime, he said was consoling his flock of about 50 people by cellphone.
“As a church, we’re praying for each other,” he said. “We’ll re-evaluate the situation tomorrow and see if there are any practical helps we can give the people.”