As dawn broke over Mississippi, a trail of destruction left by powerful tornadoes ripping through the state was laid bare – one town obliterated by the devastating storm.  At least 23 people were killed across several county’s in the region, while four remain missing, as emergency services start the long process of assessing the damage left behind by the 24 twisters.  Most of the impact spawned from a storm that carved a ferocious path northeastward across Mississippi and Alabama at 80mph.

The rural towns of Silver City and Rolling Fork, about 60 miles northeast of Jackson, Mississippi, bore the brunt of damage from a tornado that was moving at 50 mph when it hit the area just after 8 pm Friday. Shattered residents were seen wandering through a wasteland of debris in Rolling Fork, as others picked through the rubble of their gutted homes hoping to save what valuables they had left.

Over 30 million people were under a tornado warning through the evening, and were being warned to brace for the killer storms which brought golf ball-sized hail. Homes had their roofs ripped off and power lines were downed – leaving victims trapped under rubble and thousands without power. Authorities warned those in its path to brace for a ‘life threatening situation’ and on Saturday morning deployed search-and-rescue teams to several county’s in the region.