Over 200 are dead after over a hundred separate tornadoes left a trail of destruction across five states in the American South. The nation appears headed for a record number of tornadoes this year. The Federal Emergency Management Agency has been mobilized to deal with the aftermath. Tornado watches were issued for the entire East Coast as the storm system that caused the destruction yesterday moved to new ground. -- Lane Turner (23 photos total)
Faye Hyde sits on a mattress in what was her yard as she comforts her granddaughter Sierra Goldsmith, 2, in Concord, Ala. April 27. Their home was destroyed. A wave of tornado-spawning storms strafed the South on Wednesday, splintering buildings across hard-hit Alabama and killing nearly 200 people in four states. At least 58 people died in Alabama alone. (Jeff Roberts/The Birmingham News/AP)
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A large tornado sweeps through Limestone County, south of Athens, Ala., April 27. (Gary Cosby Jr./The Decatur Daily/AP) #
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This NOAA satellite image taken April 27 at 10:45 AM EDT shows fairly widespread cloud cover over the nation's mid-section as another intense storm hits. Significant daytime heating combines with a very moist and unstable airmass to stir up numerous bands of rain, thunderstorms, and severe weather events. (AP/WEATHER UNDERGROUND) #
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An injured man is carried away after a tornado touched down April 27 in Birmingham. (Bernard Troncale/The Birmingham News/AP) #
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Bystanders look at storm damage along 15th Street in Tuscaloosa April 27. (Dusty Compton/The Tuscaloosa News/AP) #
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A displaced family is assisted by emergency responders April 27 near Tuscaloosa. (Dusty Compton/Tuscaloosa News/AP) #
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Concrete steps lead to nothing after a tornado demolished a mobile home in Preston, Miss. April 27. The home and one next to it were blown about 100 feet away into a cow pasture. Three related women died at the site. (Rogelio V. Solis/AP) #
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Michael Dunn is hugged by his mother Patricia Dunn as they stand in the road that lead to his house which was destroyed after a tornado touched down April 27 in Concord, Ala. (Jeff Roberts/Birmingham News/AP) #
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Rescue workers search a hillside after a tornado ripped through parts of Concord, Ala. April 27. (Jeff Roberts/Birmingham News/AP) #
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Willie Hyde holds his granddaughter, 2-year-old Sierra Goldsmith, near where their house stood in Concord Ala., after a tornado ripped through parts of the town April 27. (Jeff Roberts/Birmingham News/AP) #
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Judy Cook, who lost her home, is comforted by Chase Spradlin in Concord, Ala. April 27. (Jeff Roberts/Birmingham News/AP) #
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Lorna McCarter (left) and daughter Susan Hutchins regroup with their dog Shadow after their home was destroyed in the Cedar Crest neighborhood in Tuscaloosa April 27. (Dusty Compton/Tuscaloosa News/AP) #
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Homes near Athens, Ala. lie destroyed following a large tornado that cut a path through Lawrence, Morgan, and Limestone Counties April 27. Kevin Harrison and his wife Sara Beth hold their children, Mason and Sophie, as they emerge from a safe room, the only thing that survived of their house. (Gary Cosby Jr./The Decatur Daily/AP) #
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A steel frame is all that remains of the fuel stand at Cheatham's Grocery Store in Coy, Miss., following a tornado touchdown April 27. (Rogelio V. Solis/AP) #
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A car lies overturned and buildings destroyed in Tuscaloosa April 27. (Dusty Compton/Tuscaloosa News/AP) #
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Pearline G. Hinton and son Kendrell Dwayne Hinton, 16, flee the remains of their home in Rosedale, Ala. after hearing that another storm was on its way after a tornado tore through April 27. (Kelly Lambert/The Tuscaloosa News/AP) #
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Rescue workers attend to an injured man after a tornado hit Pratt City, Ala. just north of downtown Birmingham April 27. The widespread destruction caused Gov. Robert Bentley to declare a state of emergency by midday, saying tornadoes, severe thunderstorms, hail, and straight-line winds caused damage to "numerous homes and businesses" in Alabama. (Butch Dill/AP) #
