At least 11 people died and dozens were injured in apparently strong tornadoes that swept through the Dallas area and caused substantial damage this weekend, while six people died in flooding in the Midwest.
It was the latest in a succession of powerful weather events across the country from heavy snow in New Mexico, west Texas and the Oklahoma Panhandle to flash flooding in parts of the Plains and Midwest. Days of tumultuous weather have led to 36 deaths overall those in Texas, plus five in Illinois, one in Missouri and 19 in the Southeast.
The full extent of damage along a nearly 40-mile (64-kilometre) stretch near Dallas was becoming clear yesterday: houses destroyed, vehicles mangled, power lines down and trees toppled. Heavy rain and wind hampered cleanup efforts last afternoon.
"This is a huge impact on our community and we're all suffering," Garland Police Lt Pedro Barineau said of the community about 20 miles (32 kilometres) northeast of Dallas, where eight people died, 15 were injured and about 600 structures, mostly single-family homes, were damaged.
The weather service said an EF-4 tornado, which is the second-most powerful with winds up to more than 200 mph (320 kph), hit the community at about 6:45 pm on Saturday. At least three people who died were found in vehicles, said Barineau.
The destruction in Garland was so overwhelming that Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins declared the city a disaster within mere minutes of seeing the toll firsthand.
"I don't declare local disasters lightly," Jenkins said. "But I looked at the scene for 10 minutes, spoke to the incident commander and then called the lawyers to bring the paperwork."
In the nearby town of Rowlett, City Manager Brian Funderburk said yesterday morning that 23 people were injured, but that there were no deaths and no reports of missing people. The weather service said damage indicated it was likely an EF-3 tornado, which has winds up to 165 mph (266 kph).
Three other people died in Collin County, about 45 miles (72.4 kilometres) northeast of Dallas, according to sheriff's deputy Chris Havey, although the circumstances were not immediately clear.
Meanwhile, Oklahoma Governor Mary Fallin declared a state of emergency as there were blizzard conditions and an ice storm warning out west and flood warnings in the east, where one community had received 9 inches (22.5 centimetres) of rain.
