Storms kill at least nine across southern U.S.

Southerners were assessing the damage Friday morning after a massive storm Thursday night sent tornadoes through towns and homes across the South. The storm killed at least nine people in Georgia and Alabama and injured at least 12 people. Thirty-three tornadoes were reported across Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee, Kentucky, South Carolina, and North Carolina, according to the National Weather Service—but not all of the tornadoes have been confirmed.

What is the damage? One tornado destroyed at least 40 homes in Alabama where it cut a 20-mile path across two rural communities, Autauga County officials said. Southeast of Atlanta, the storm seems to have knocked a freight train off the tracks, officials said. More than 40,000 customers were without power across Georgia and Alabama on Friday morning, according to the website poweroutage.us. 

Dig deeper: Read Esther Eaton’s report in WORLD Magazine on how people on both sides of the climate change issue are trying to talk it out.