The death toll from tornadoes and violent storms that hit several US states this weekend reached at least 2 deaths on Sunday, April 29, according to authorities.

Two children and an adult were killed in Memphis, Tennessee, when trees fell on homes, local police told AFP on Sunday. This brings the death toll in the southern state to 12. The previous national death toll was 26.

In Indiana, five people were killed by a storm, three in Sullivan County and two campers in Owen County, the state's public resource management agency said Saturday night.

These deaths are in addition to the victims recorded in the states of Arkansas, Mississippi, Alabama, in the south, as well as in those of Illinois, in the north of the country, and Delaware on the east coast.

The collapse of a structure in Sussex County in Delaware killed one person Saturday evening, as the weather service also warned neighboring states such as Pennsylvania and New York state of high winds and potential tornadoes.

Joe Biden's support

"We are working closely with the State of Indiana and other affected states as they assess the damage and stand ready to respond to any additional requests for federal assistance," US President Joe Biden said Sunday, expressing support for the victims and their families.

Wherever thunderstorms and tornadoes have struck since Friday, residents now face a spectacle of devastation with cars turned over, huge trees uprooted, telephone poles broken or homes gutted. More than 230,000 homes remained without power in several northeastern states on Sunday, according to the US website PowerOutage.

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

With AFP

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