Doden en gewonden door tornado in Arkansas
Storms rake Midwest; tornado hits Ark. town
A tornado struck a small Arkansas town on Thursday night, causing minor injuries, as part of a severe storm system moving quickly across the nation's midsection. The reported tornado scored a direct hit on the Polk County Courthouse in Mena, near the Oklahoma state line, said Renee Preslar, a spokeswoman for the Arkansas Department of Emergency Management.
Twelve minor injuries were reported in the town, but authorities were going door-to-door checking for more injuries. A state trooper in Mena called for assistance after his patrol car got stuck in the storm, pelted with debris and covered with power lines, state police spokesman Bill Sadler said.
"I'm in the middle of a tornado," Sadler said the trooper reported. Damage also was reported in eastern Oklahoma, apparently from the same storm. Preslar said local officials had asked utility companies to shut off all gas lines to Mena and surrounding areas. Sadler said troopers reported a gas main had been ruptured. The National Weather Service reported that 3-inch diameter hail forecasters described it as apple-sized fell south of Mena just before the tornado hit downtown. Tornado damage was also reported at Ink, 5 miles east of Mena.
©MSNBC
A tornado struck a small Arkansas town on Thursday night, causing minor injuries, as part of a severe storm system moving quickly across the nation's midsection. The reported tornado scored a direct hit on the Polk County Courthouse in Mena, near the Oklahoma state line, said Renee Preslar, a spokeswoman for the Arkansas Department of Emergency Management.
Twelve minor injuries were reported in the town, but authorities were going door-to-door checking for more injuries. A state trooper in Mena called for assistance after his patrol car got stuck in the storm, pelted with debris and covered with power lines, state police spokesman Bill Sadler said.
"I'm in the middle of a tornado," Sadler said the trooper reported. Damage also was reported in eastern Oklahoma, apparently from the same storm. Preslar said local officials had asked utility companies to shut off all gas lines to Mena and surrounding areas. Sadler said troopers reported a gas main had been ruptured. The National Weather Service reported that 3-inch diameter hail forecasters described it as apple-sized fell south of Mena just before the tornado hit downtown. Tornado damage was also reported at Ink, 5 miles east of Mena.
©MSNBC
