WILMINGTON: At least three people were killed after a tornado tore through a seaside town in North Carolina as millions of people in Texas remained in the dark early on Tuesday amid subfreezing temperatures.
The deadly tornado, which authorities said left at least 10 people injured, hit just after midnight on Tuesday in southeastern Brunswick County near Grissettown in the Ocean Ridge Plantation Community.
According to media reports, the tornado destroyed homes, downing powerlines that left thousands without electricity and snapping trees in half. "It's something like I have never seen before. A lot of destruction. It’s going to be a long recovery process," Brunswick County Sheriff John Ingram said at a press conference early on Tuesday.
Brunswick County Emergency Management said people were trapped in homes. Ingram said searches for missing people were underway and will increase during the day. He's asked people to avoid the area while crews work to clear the streets and search for victims.
Meanwhile, nearly 4 million homes and businesses were without power early Tuesday in Texas, where temperatures dipped into the single digits overnight. In Houston, a woman and a girl died from suspected carbon monoxide poisoning at a home without electricity from a car running in an attached garage, police said.