Getty ImagesAt least four people have died after dozens of tornadoes tore through the southern United States, causing extensive property damage and leaving tens of thousands of people without power.
On Saturday and Sunday, nearly 40 tornadoes were reported in Texas, North Carolina, Louisiana, Georgia and Arkansas.
Two of the deaths occurred in Mississippi, and one each in Texas and North Carolina.
About 80 people are killed each year by tornadoes in the United States, according to National Weather Service (NWS) statistics.
Mississippi Governor Tate Reeves said one of the state's two deaths occurred in Adams County, about 92 miles (148 km) west of Jackson.
The second death occurred in Lowndes County, on the state's border with Alabama. At least ten people were injured across the state.
As of 10:30 local time Monday (15:30 GMT), nearly 32,000 people were still without power in Mississippi, down from about 100,000 after the storms hit over the weekend, according to PowerOutage.us.
In Texas, the December 28 tornado watch received a rare rating of “particularly dangerous situation” from the Storm Prediction Center — a rare event that occurs in only about 7% of tornadoes each year.
Although there are no official standards for issuing similar warnings, they are typically given when forecasters believe that several “strong” or “violent” hurricanes are imminent in a given area.
A 48-year-old woman was killed in Brazoria County, Texas, near the state's Gulf Coast, according to the local sheriff's office. Four people were also injured, not seriously.
In Montgomery County, Texas, north of Houston, nearly 300 buildings were damaged — including 30 that were completely destroyed — after tornadoes with winds of up to 145 mph (233 km/h) swept through the area.
The fourth death occurred in North Carolina, where the state highway patrol said that a 70-year-old man named Matthew Ronald Table was killed after a tree fell on him while driving.
According to NWS statistics, about 800 tornadoes are reported across the United States on average annually, resulting in 80 deaths and 1,500 injuries.
However, this year the United States recorded 1,762 tornadoes between January and November, the most since 2011.
