Storm system in Deep South leaves damage and death in its wake
At least two deaths along the Gulf Coast were blamed on storms that hit Wednesday night and Thursday. At least 12 tornadoes were confirmed in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama, with the damage surveys expected to continue Friday.
The Storm Prediction Center reported downed trees and utility lines from eastern Texas to northwest Alabama. The Southeastern storms left nearly 110,000 homes and businesses without electricity at the height, and both weather-related deaths occurred in wrecks.
In Mississippi, the Department of Public Safety said Alcorn State University student Jayla A. Gray, 19, of Jackson died early Thursday when the car in which she was a passenger struck a tree that had fallen across a highway near the town of Port Gibson, which is about 60 miles (97 kilometers) southwest of the capital of Jackson.
In Louisiana, a pair of twisters with top winds of 115 mph (185 kph) hit Washington Parish, north of New Orleans. Near Bogalusa, a mobile home rolled over, injuring two occupants. Two weaker tornadoes were also confirmed in and around Lake Charles, including one that damaged a vacant shopping center near McNeese State University.
In northwest Alabama, surveyors said a weak tornado with top winds of 65 mph (105 kph) caused tree damage near the Franklin County crossroads of Pogo.
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