Washington DC, 27 March 2023 (TDI): The United States (US) government has pledged its full support to the communities impacted by the devastating storms that hit Mississippi and Alabama on Friday.
.@SecondGentleman and I are praying for the families who lost loved ones in the devastating Mississippi tornadoes.
As @POTUS said, we will do everything we can to support search and rescue efforts, and help communities recover.
— Vice President Kamala Harris (@VP) March 26, 2023
Damage from tornadoes
The storm system produced tornadoes, heavy rain, wind gusts, and hail as it traveled throughout the South, causing catastrophic damage to communities across the region.
The National Weather Service confirmed the tornado caused damage about 60 miles northeast of Jackson, Mississippi.
In Rolling Fork, a rural town about 60 miles northwest of the state capital of Jackson, buildings are now piles of scattered debris.
The twister moved northeast, devastating rural areas, leaving at least 25 people dead in Mississippi, and one person in Alabama.
The deadly twisters came on the heels of damaging storms the region experienced on Thursday and Friday, with forecasters warning about an outbreak of severe weather for days.
In Southern Missouri, a car with six teenagers inside was swept away by floodwaters, leaving two dead. At least two tornadoes also swept through north Texas on Friday, with winds of 100 mph.
The storm knocked out power to hundreds of thousands of customers across the Midwest and the Northeast, with more than 359,000 customers without power in Ohio and over 130,000 customers without power in Pennsylvania as of Saturday night.
For the information, Joe Biden has expressed his condolences and offered full federal support to Mississippi Governor Tate Reeves, Senator Wicker, Senator Hyde-Smith, and Congressman Bennie Thompson.
Moreover, he also spoke to Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Administrator, Deanne Criswell who has already deployed emergency response personnel and resources.
This is done to support search-and-rescue teams, assess the damage, and focus federal support where it is needed most quickly.
Unfortunately, Mississippi has potentially more bad weather heading our way.
Please take caution, check weather alerts, and keep your families safe today.
We’re monitoring the situation and have emergency management prepared to respond as necessary. pic.twitter.com/vQWRyKpsDJ
— Governor Tate Reeves (@tatereeves) March 26, 2023
“The images from across Mississippi are heartbreaking. While we are still assessing the full extent of the damage, we know that many of our fellow Americans are not only grieving for family and friends, they’ve lost their homes and businesses,” said President Biden in a statement on Saturday.
Furthermore, Homeland Security Secretary, Alejandro N. Mayorkas and FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell traveled to Mississippi to survey the damage caused by tornadoes.
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In a nutshell, the US government is committed to working with state and local officials to ensure that those impacted by the storms receive the resources they need to recover and rebuild.
To note, the communities affected by the storms are not alone, and the government will do everything it can to support them in this difficult time.
