|
US tornado kills 7yr-old girl
01/03/2007 20:22 - (SA)
Missouri - Tornadoes swept through southern Missouri at dawn on Thursday, damaging homes and businesses and killing at least one person a few hours after another twister touched down in Kansas, said authorities.
A seven-year-old girl was killed in Missouri, and there were reports of people missing from the Caulfield area, said state highway patrol sergeant Marty Elmore.
Howell county sheriff Robbie Crites said the girls' mother, father and brother were also injured when a tornado hit their mobile home in a rural wooded area 26km southwest of West Plains.
At least four mobile homes, two houses and two service stations in Caulfield were damaged when the twisters hit at 06:30, and a tornado also touched down near an elementary school in Caulfield.
Two more tornadoes were also reported in the area, said Mike Wade, a dispatcher at Howell county sheriff's office.
The burst of tornadoes was part of a larger line of thunderstorm and snowstorms that stretched from Minnesota to Louisiana.
Schools close early
In Nebraska, strong wind and heavy snow caused whiteout conditions in eastern Nebraska that forced the shutdown of 121km of a major interstate highway.
Tornado watches issued on Thursday morning across Alabama led several school systems to close or dismiss students early.
In Kansas' Linn County, along the Missouri state line, a tornado on Wednesday night destroyed a power substation, and roofs and siding were torn from buildings, Linn County emergency management director David Yates said.
He said some minor injuries were reported.
The storm also ripped out poles and electric lines, but power was expected to be restored by the end of the day, said Paul Norris, operations manager for Heartland Rural Electric Co-operative.
- AP
|
News
