A series of tornadoes have torn through the central part of the United States, especially in Oklahoma, were 12 people suffered injuries from the storm. Videos have shown up on the Internet catching their fury.
According to Daniella Silva of NBC News, at least 20 twisters were sighted across three states - Kansas, Oklahoma and Nebraska. A tornado destroyed two mobile home parks in the southern portion of Oklahoma City, injuring at least 12 people.
"Crews are searching the areas now, going door-to-door looking for victims in need of assistance," Oklahoma City Police Department Capt. Dee Patty said.
Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management spokeswoman Keli Cain told NBC News that Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin has prepared an emergency declaration and has planned to tour the areas that took the brunt of the storm. Oklahoma City officials also declared a flash flood emergency for the first time in history.
"Deadly and dangerous. Do not drive," city officials said via social media.
According to Ken Miller of the Associated Press, parts of Oklahoma City saw more than 6 inches of rain on Wednesday. The Storm Prediction Center indicated that bad weather would hit the region; rural areas of Kansas and Nebraska also spotted tornadoes.
"At least nine tornadoes were reported in Kansas, the strongest of them in the sparsely populated north-central part of the state," Miller wrote. "That included a large tornado near the tiny town of Republic just south of the Nebraska state line, where some homes were damaged."
NBC News reported that the crazy weather knocked out power for more than 28,000 people across Oklahoma, according to local power company reports. The Will Rogers World Airport in Oklahoma City had to be evacuated twice as severe weather approached the area.
"People just really need to stay weather aware, have a plan and understand that severe storms are possible across portions of the southern Plains almost daily through Saturday," National Weather Service meteorologist Jonathan Kurtz said.
Maria Vultaggio of International Business Times reported that live stream footage of the tornadoes came from the Twitter account of The Weather Channel. Twitter users could access the stream through the video streaming app called Periscope.
"Twitter users in the area posted that they could hear sirens," Vultaggio wrote.
The Weather Channel set up a webpage where readers can access the latest updates on the tornado outbreak as the storm progresses in the area. At last count, over 30 tornadoes have been reported across the region.
