Two dead as tornadoes sweep across South

At least two people were killed amid multiple tornadoes stemming from a strong storm that hit across parts of the Southern United States and could cause more severe weather on Wednesday. 

The two people killed were a mother and son in northern Louisiana, where their home was destroyed in the storm. 

The boy was found dead in a wooded area more than a half mile away from his home in the area around Keithville, which is located on the western side of the state not far from the border with Texas. His mother was found dead one street away from their home, according to Caddo Parish Sheriff Steve Prator. 

The child’s father initially reported them missing. 

About 20 people were taken to the hospital in the town of Farmerville, located about 90 miles east of Keithville, after a tornado caused significant damage to mobile homes and an apartment building, according to the Union Parish Sheriff’s Office. Some of the people were hospitalized with critical injuries. 

Video and eyewitness reports confirmed at least five tornadoes across northern Texas on Tuesday, but the National Weather Service (NWS) believes as many as a dozen might have happened. 

“You are in a life-threatening situation. Flying debris may be deadly to those caught without shelter. Mobile homes will be destroyed. Considerable damage to homes, businesses, and vehicles is likely and complete destruction is possible,” the National Weather Service said in a tornado warning for a county in north central Texas. 

A spokesperson for local police in a suburb of Dallas confirmed five injuries occurred Tuesday, and another official said a possible tornado took off the roof of the city’s service center and left pieces of it hanging from power lines. 

More severe storms are expected in the central Gulf Coast, which includes New Orleans and southern Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and the Florida Panhandle, and more tornadoes could also occur. 

Blizzard warnings are active from Montana to Colorado, and the NWS said up to 2 feet of snow was possible in some parts of western South Dakota and northwestern Nebraska. 

Nebraska could also face more than 50-mile-per-hour winds at times. 

The storm is expected to move into the Northeast and central Appalachians after it leaves the upper Midwest. 

The Associated Press contributed to this report.