People trapped after tornado hits Birmingham, Ala

On Thursday, the US National Weather Service said that stormy weather in the region had killed at least seven people and injured dozens of others.

Holmes said reports of tornado activity in Bibb County, also southwest of Birmingham, have not been confirmed.

Flynn says search crews are looking for others who are missing.

The agency says this increases the number of deaths in the state to eight, and the number of missing persons to two.

Mississippi Emergency Management Agency spokesman Greg Flynn said Thursday a 35-person team was out looking for the two unaccounted people in Benton County, where he said at least two people died in the storms.

“I grabbed my son and said ‘let’s go.’ By the time I said that and put him in the hallway, that wind tore the whole half out – it just broke out the front window, back window, tore the whole wall down in the back”. Exactly a year ago, tornadoes hit MS, killing five people and injuring dozens.

A flash flood watch has been issued for parts of Tennessee following storms that have pounded the Southeast this week.

“When they tell you take cover, take cover”, said one woman whose home was damaged told NBC affiliate WVTM. Albany’s 58 degrees Thursday morning broke the previous record of 57 set on December 24, 1941.

WIAT 42 News Reported Stephon Dingle was the first to arrive on Jefferson Avenue in Birmingham to speak to those impacted by a possible tornado.

“We’re just there to salvage what we can salvage”, he said.

The service confirms a tornado touched down in southwest Jefferson County about 5 p.m. ET, moving northeast toward the city of Birmingham, Ala.

Police say splintered trees covered a road near Clayton.

Heavy rain already is falling in areas stretching across Alabama, from the MS state line west of Tuscaloosa to the Georgia state line east of Anniston. The weather service says more than 9 inches of rain fell overnight in Coffee County. Flooded roads, with watches and warnings across Central Alabama prompted warnings that residents remain off the streets. Extensive damage was reported on Jefferson Avenue SW, where an entire city block sustained major damage.

There were also reports of flash flooding through northern Mississippi.

Unseasonably warm weather Wednesday helped spawn twisters from Arkansas to MI.

In Benton County, Mississippi, relatives helped Daisy and Charles Johnson clean up after the storm flattened their house.

Among the dead were seven people from MS, including a 7-year-old boy who perished while riding in a auto that was swept up and tossed by storm winds.