One Devastating Storm System: What to Know About the Havoc
The New York Times
The tornadoes, dust storms and wind-fanned wildfires have led to at least 37 deaths across the nation this past week.
Rain, snow, hail, dust, fire, tornadoes. A giant cross-country storm system last week led to one hazard after another, lashing California with an atmospheric river, fueling wildfires in Oklahoma and spawning tornadoes from Missouri to Alabama.
A part of Texas felt like Mars. Huge stretches of communities across the Midwest and South were reduced to rubble. A governor lost a farmhouse to fire. And the area near a tiny town in Mississippi was struck by a tornado twice.
It has all added up to a devastating mix. Since Friday, at least 37 deaths across seven states have been attributed to the storm.
Here are a few things to know about the storm system and its impact.
That number was reported by the Storm Prediction Center, though it may change. Overall, tornadoes and severe storms have killed at least 24 people across four states — Alabama, Arkansas, Missouri and Mississippi. Missouri has had the highest number of fatalities, 12.
Across the region, homes were leveled, with huge debris fields in their wake. In Poplar Bluff, Mo., in the southeastern corner of the state, more than 500 homes were destroyed. Alabama, where two people died, reported damage in 52 of the state’s 67 counties.
