By Rich McKay
ATLANTA (Reuters) – Three people were killed in Missouri as a series of tornadoes hit the U.S. Midwest and southeast overnight, raking a path of destruction that was still being assessed early on Saturday, police said.
At least 26 tornadoes were reported but not confirmed to have touched down late on Friday night and early on Saturday as a low pressure system drove powerful thunderstorms across parts of Arkansas, Illinois, Mississippi and Missouri, said David Roth, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service’s Weather Prediction Center.
“Today there is a high risk for more tornadoes across Alabama and Mississippi, the chance is 30%,” he said. “That’s pretty significant.”
Two of the tornado deaths occurred in southern Missouri in the Bakersfield area of Ozark County, about four hours south of Kansas City, and a third death was reported in Butler County, the Missouri State Highway Patrol and other officials said.
Some people were injured, the highway patrol reported, but no numbers were immediately available.
As the storms regain strength, the highest possible risk of tornadoes and severe thunderstorms is on Saturday night, forecasters said.
(Reporting by Rich McKay in Atlanta; Editing by Aidan Lewis)
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