At least two people died and three others were hurt when a possible tornado hit areas near Knoxville, Tennessee, on Thursday night, causing a lot of damage.
Morgan County Emergency Management reported the deaths to WBIR, an NBC affiliate in Knoxville, early Friday.
The Morgan County Emergency Management and Homeland Security Agency posted on Facebook that a “possible tornado” hit the Deer Lodge and Sunbright areas at 8:27 p.m. This area is about 60 miles west of Knoxville.
The agency reported that there was “severe property damage, injuries, and loss of life,” but did not share any specific numbers about how many people were affected or what types of accidents occurred.
As of 5:30 a.m., over 2,700 energy users still had no power, according to PowerOutage.us. Phone and internet services have also been impacted.
“Local, county, and state emergency responders, along with teams from various agencies, are currently working on search and rescue efforts and checking people’s safety,” the statement said. Over 100 staff members are helping those in need, and people are advised to stay away from the affected places.
Captain Stacey Heatherly from the Tennessee Highway Patrol said in a Facebook video that state troopers are helping look for any lost people in Morgan County and can assist other areas of the state if needed.
Tornado alerts were given for east Tennessee on Thursday night because of storms in the area. Videos posted on TikTok showed a tornado warning and police sirens in Sevierville, which is east of Knoxville.
WBIR, an NBC station in Knoxville, showed images of flash flooding in the area. They reported from a church in Fountain City where a tree came crashing through the roof while a youth group was having a Bible study in the basement. There were no recorded injuries.
WBIR showed videos of heavy rain falling sideways and hailstones larger than coins.
Morgan County has established an emergency operations center, with extra buildings located at Wartburg Central High School.
Elsewhere, a tornado was confirmed by the National Weather Service Thursday in south-central Kentucky, with wind speeds of up to 95 mph causing extensive damage in Hart County, an hour south of Louisville, although no injuries were recorded.
In the past week, many areas in the Lower 48 states have faced bad winter weather, including a lot of ice. By Wednesday, around 100 million people were under watches and warnings.
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