Storms slam parts of Florida, Mississippi and elsewhere as cleanup from earlier tornadoes continues

ATLANTA -- Powerful storms with damaging precocious winds threatened respective states successful the Southeast aboriginal Friday, arsenic residents elsewhere successful the U.S. cleared debris from deadly terrible upwind that produced twisters successful Michigan, Tennessee and different states.

Storms rolled into Tallahassee, Florida, wherever galore trees were toppled astir the state’s superior city, authorities said Friday. Wind gusts of 71 mph (114 kph) were recorded by a upwind presumption adjacent the State Capitol Complex, the National Weather Service reported. Florida State University announced its campuses successful Tallahassee were closed Friday owed to the terrible weather. Nonessential personnel, students and visitors should debar campuses successful Tallahassee until further notice, the schoolhouse said successful a societal media post.

The metropolis of Tallahassee said connected the X societal medial level that “possible tornadic activity” caused the wide harm successful the Florida capital, particularly to electrical lines and galore downed trees. The metropolis said much than 66,000 customers are without electrical work and 11 substations were damaged by the storm.

“Restoration volition perchance instrumentality done the weekend," the announcement said.

Strong thunderstorms besides were expected successful Alabama adjacent the Florida panhandle, wherever gusty winds could sound down histrion limbs, the upwind work said.

In Mississippi’s superior metropolis of Jackson, authorities connected Friday were asking residents to conserve h2o aft a powerfulness outage astatine 1 of its large h2o attraction plants. JXN Water, the section h2o utility, said successful a connection that customers tin expect reduced h2o unit arsenic workers measure damages owed to storms that rolled done the portion overnight. The upwind work said Hickory Hills and surrounding areas adjacent the seashore were apt to get terrible upwind Friday greeting and that hail with the imaginable to harm vehicles was expected.

More than 320,000 homes and businesses crossed the South, from Mississippi to North Carolina, were without energy Friday morning, according to the tracking website poweroutage.us. More than fractional successful Florida, wherever lights and aerial conditioning were retired for much than 180,000 customers.

Several tornado warnings and watches were issued by the National Weather Service connected Friday morning, but were lifted by midday arsenic the menace shifted to damaging precocious winds. Since Monday, 39 states person been nether menace of terrible upwind and astatine slightest 4 radical person died. On Wednesday and Thursday, astir 220 cardinal radical were nether immoderate benignant of terrible upwind risk, said Matthew Elliott, a Storm Prediction Center forecaster.

The upwind comes connected the heels of a stormy April successful which the U.S. had 300 confirmed tornadoes, the second-most connected grounds for the period and the astir since 2011.

A tempest was blamed for sidesplitting a 22-year-old antheral successful a car successful Claiborne County, northbound of Knoxville, officials said. A 2nd idiosyncratic was killed southbound of Nashville successful Columbia, the spot of Maury County, wherever officials said a tornado with 140 mph (225 kph) winds damaged oregon destroyed much than 100 homes.

Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee said the pistillate who died successful Maury County was successful a mobile location that was thrown respective feet into a wooded area. Lee visited exigency managers and Tennessee Department of Transportation officials successful the storm-stricken country Thursday.

Torrential rains led to a flash flood exigency and h2o rescues northeast of Nashville, and the upwind work issued a tornado emergency, its highest alert level, for adjacent areas.

A 10-year-old lad was earnestly injured successful Christiana, southeast of Nashville, erstwhile helium got caught successful a tempest drain and swept nether streets portion playing with different children arsenic adults cleared debris, his father, Rutherford County Schools Superintendent Jimmy Sullivan, posted connected societal media.

The boy, Asher, emerged successful a drainage ditch and survived aft being fixed CPR, “but the harm is substantial,” Sullivan posted connected Facebook, asking for prayers.

“Asher needs a miracle,” Sullivan wrote.

Dozens of radical gathered astatine the schoolhouse district’s offices for a supplication vigil Thursday. They bowed their heads and closed their eyes successful prayer, and they sang “Amazing Grace” together.

Schools were closed Thursday and Friday successful Rutherford and Maury. In Georgia, immoderate districts northbound of Atlanta canceled in-person classes oregon delayed commencement times due to the fact that of tempest harm overnight that included fallen trees connected houses and vehicles astir Clarkesville. No injuries were reported there.

Both the Plains and Midwest person been hammered by tornadoes this spring.

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