23 people killed as tornado hits US’ Mississippi: Reports

Moscow: The death toll from a severe tornado that struck the US state of Mississippi has risen to 23, with four people missing, the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency (MEMA) said on Saturday.

Earlier in the day, CNN reported, citing local authorities, that 21 people had been killed in the storm.

“Morning Update as of 6:20am [11:20 GMT]: We can confirm 23 dead, dozens injured, 4 missing due to last night’s tornadoes. We have numerous local and state search and rescue teams that continue to work this morning. A number of assets are on the ground to assist those that have been impacted,” MEMA wrote on Twitter.

Nearly,15,000 customers remain without power in Mississippi as a result of the storm, according to data from the PowerOutage.us portal.

Earlier on Saturday, MEMA said that search and rescue efforts were underway in the counties of Sharkey and Humphreys. The agency issued a series of tornado warnings for counties across the state.