A line of powerful storms rolled over several states in central and southern U.S. on Monday, spawning tornadoes, claiming lives and causing property damage.
The affected states include Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma and Alabama, said the U.S. National Weather service. Two people were killed and several others injured in the extreme weather.
A tornado that touched down near Ashdown, some 240 km southwest of Little Rock, the capital city of Arkansas, killed a man and injured his wife when their home was destroyed early Monday.
In Alabama, a tree fell on a mobile home about 40 km northwest of Birmingham, killing a woman and injuring her husband. A state of emergency was declared in Louisiana as the severe weather moved across the state. Lightning was believed to have caused a fire at an oil well site in east Texas.
Several states issued tornado and flash flood warnings as the storms rolled by. Heavy rains were dumped in major cities including Houston and New Orleans. Trees and electricity poles were downed and thousands of homes were left without power.
Meteorologists said the severe weather threat will continue overnight into Tuesday for large portions of Central and Southern U.S.. Damaging winds are expected and a few tornadoes may occur Monday evening.