[TheCruxofBag]

Powerful tornadoes tore through parts of the Deep South on Friday night, killing at least 23 people in Mississippi, obliterating dozens of buildings and leaving an especially devastating mark on a rural town whose mayor declared, “My city is gone.”

The Mississippi Emergency Management Agency confirmed early Saturday that 23 people had died, four were missing and dozens were injured. A few minutes later, the agency warned the casualty toll could go higher.

Rolling Fork Mayor Eldridge Walker told CNN that his town was essentially wiped out. Video shot as daylight broke showed houses reduced to piles of rubble, cars flipped on their sides and trees stripped of their branches. Occasionally, in the midst of the wreckage, a home would be spared, seemingly undamaged.

“My city is gone. But we are resilient and we are going to come back strong,” he said.

The National Weather Service confirmed a tornado caused damage about 60 miles (96 kilometers) northeast of Jackson, Mississippi. The rural towns of Rolling Fork as well as Silver City reported destruction as the tornado swept northeast at 70 mph (113 kph) without weakening, racing toward Alabama through towns, including Winona and Amory, into the night.

The damage in Rolling Fork was so widespread that several storm chasers — who follow severe weather and often put up livestreams showing dramatic funnel clouds — pleaded for search and rescue help. Others abandoned the chase to drive injured people to the hospitals themselves.

The Sharkey County Sheriff’s Office in Rolling Fork reported gas leaks and people trapped in piles of rubble, according to the Vicksburg News.

[Bastet]

Striking, if desolate, images and video clips. This brings to my mind the Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds song "Tupelo".

[Cashenstein]

[GnB8915]

holy.. getting hit by a tornado at night is a real life nightmare

[Zaries]

Amory Ms was also hit in this series and fucked up to the point they still don't have reliable cell service ������ this was in my area and it was pure hell trying to make sure family/friends weren't dead.

[submarginal]

Aw the dog

[Roosta]

Always wondered why ppl rebuild in tornado alley.

[PhognaBologna]

When you don’t take your Christmas lights down after April God takes them down for you

[Roosta]

WOW, the sheer power to do that must have been incredible !

So very sad to see that ppl have lost everything but a couple of things concern me & it always has.

Firstly, the Mayor, like many other mayors in Tornado Alley say that they will come back "Stronger than Anything, meaning that they will rebuild & he quoted as saying “My city is gone. But we are resilient and we are going to come back strong,” Rolling Fork Mayor Eldridge Walker told CNN.
Why would you insist on rebuilding in the Tornado Alley Zone as you would essentially be knowingly putting your family in danger by doing so, or is it the pride driven, stupid stubborn factor where the fear of being beaten / defeated, is greater than the risk of it happening again so you rebuilt. I'm also surprised that they can get insurance being in a high risk zone just like mapped flood zones are hard to get insurance in as they are prone to flooding ect, they must have a Tornado Trajectory Mapping System to work out your premiums as the higher the risk zone the higher the premium ect.

[shadesofcolours]

Looks like Gaza except Gaza wasn't caused by a weather but by people.