At least three people were killed Friday, March 31 by a powerful tornado that swept the state of Arkansas, in the south of the United States, while the partial collapse of a theater, further north, under the blow of violent storms has left at least one dead and 28 injured, according to the authorities.

In Arkansas, two people died in the small town of Wynne, said at a press conference Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders, who has declared the state of emergency and deployed a hundred National Guardsmen. "Central Arkansas suffered significant damage," she tweeted.

In addition, Pulaski County - where Arkansas' capital Little Rock is located - has been hit hard, a third death confirmed to AFP. "Thirty people were transported to hospitals" in the city, Little Rock Mayor Frank Scott told reporters.

The National Weather Service (NWS) has issued tornado warnings for parts of neighboring states like Tennessee, Illinois and Iowa.

The tornado left in its wake a spectacle of desolation with cars overturned, huge trees uprooted, telephone poles broken in two or houses gutted. More than 78,000 people were without electricity, according to the US website Poweroutage.

WATCH: @CharlesPeekWX drone footage shows destroyed structures, a derailed train, and the remains of a home on fire after a tornado tore through Wynne, Arkansas. pic.twitter.com/XiIJxpwuBU

— The Weather Channel (@weatherchannel) April 1, 2023 Lara Farrar, a journalist for a local business publication, told AFP by phone that she was "totally shocked" to discover the damage near her home in Little Rock. "The roofs of some buildings have been completely blown out," she said, sharing images of destroyed houses, walls partially torn off, trees on the ground.

"The neighborhood was simply razed and destroyed," she added, referring to significant destruction on a strip about 500 meters wide but with "very little damage" outside.

A roof collapses in the middle of a concert

In the north of the country, in the small town of Belvidere, west of Chicago in the state of Illinois, part of the roof and façade of the Apollo Theatre collapsed during the passage of a violent storm. A concert by a heavy metal band was underway, according to local media.

Belvidere Fire Chief Shawn Schadle reported one dead and 28 injured, including five hospitalized with serious injuries. More than twenty ambulances have been mobilized, according to local press.

Television footage showed injured spectators being evacuated on stretchers, and on social media, photos showed a pile of debris reaching the waist and a gaping hole in the roof.

Tornadoes, weather phenomena as impressive as they are difficult to predict, are common in the United States, especially in the center and south of the country. A week ago, a tornado swept across the Mississippi River, killing 25 people and causing immense property damage. President Joe Biden visited the site on Friday.

In December 2021, about 80 people lost their lives after tornadoes hit Kentucky.

With AFP

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