KABUL: (MEP) Deadly Storms hit the U.S. South, Southwest and Midwest over the Christmas holiday weekend, unleashing floods and tornadoes that killed at least 41 people, flattened buildings and snarled transportation for millions during a busy travel time.
At least 11 people were killed in the Dallas area and eight lost their lives in the city of Garland as tornadoes blew vehicles off highways.
“A tornado of that strength is very rare in a metropolitan area,” National Weather Service meteorologist Matt Bishop told the Reuters news agency.
The bad weather, or the threat of it, prompted the governors of Missouri and New Mexico to declare a state of emergency for their states.
Flash floods killed at least 13 people in Missouri and Illinois.
According to US weather data, strong tornadoes usually strike in spring and summer in central states but occur less frequently in winter.
“It is total devastation,” Garland Police spokesman Lieutenant Pedro Barineau said. “It is a very difficult time to be struck by such a horrible storm the day after Christmas.”
In Illinois and Missouri, flash flooding killed at least 11 people, according to reports published on Sunday. Additionally, six people died in Tennessee and one each in Arkansas and Alabama by tornadoes.
Three more people were killed and scores of others were injured in the Dallas metropolitan area.
New Mexico Governor Susana Martinez declared a state of emergency for the entire state due to a winter storm that had dumped up to two feet of snow by Sunday night.
The New Mexico city of Roswell bested its one-day snowfall record, receiving 12.3 inches by Sunday evening, the Weather Service said.
