Tornado Hits Birmingham, Alabama, as Severe Southern Weather Continues

First responders are checking damaged buildings to make sure no one is trapped inside.

More than 20 Alabama counties were reporting washed out roads and bridges, Faulkner said.

Officials confirmed that 10 people have died from tornadoes and flooding in MS since Wednesday, with six other deaths in Tennessee and one in Arkansas attributed to the storms. The National Weather Service said the Dallas area was under a tornado warning Saturday. They carried some of the couple's belongings past a Santa Claus figure on a table.

In the town of Rowlett near Garland, City Manager Brian Funderburk said Sunday morning that 23 people were injured, though the extent of their injuries weren't know, but that there were no deaths and no reports of missing people. Two people in one home were killed.

Newly homeless, Perkins said she was happy just to be alive - especially after learning two of her neighbors had died in the storm.

Birmingham spokesman April Odom said a preliminary assessment found that the storm damaged 72 structures in the Jefferson Avenue area, ranging from minor damage to full destruction. The line of severe storms continued marching eastward Thursday, dumping torrential rain that flooded roads in Alabama and caused a mudslide in the mountains of Georgia.

'This was just the right thing to do, come help a family in need, ' Shupiery said.

Sunday Governor Robert Bentley will tour tornado damaged areas in Jefferson County, and discuss the state's response to the tornadoes and flooding experienced statewide.

A tornado touched down in Birmingham on Friday evening, but damage was limited.

After noontime, the main energy of this storm system should begin to push into east Alabama, where flooding will remain the primary concern. The storm blew the roofs off homes, mangled vehicles, damaged churches, downed power lines, toppled trees and caused natural gas lines to burst.

Peak tornado season in the South is in the spring, but storms can happen any time.

Residents of several southern states on Saturday began surveying the ruins left by tornadoes and heavy rains that barreled through the region this week, killing at least 18 people.

AP writers contributing to this report were Erik Schelzig from Linden, Tennessee; Phillip Lucas from Falkner, Mississippi; Jay Reeves in Atlanta; Lucas Johnson in Nashville; and Chevel Johnson in New Orleans.

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