States digging out from deadly tornadoes
WAVERLY, Va-- Virginia State Police have released the names of the three people who were killed when a tornado demolished a mobile home in Waverly.
Police said in a news release that the victims were 50-year-old Larry D. Turner, 26-year-old Devine J. Springfield and 2-year-old Ivan T. Lewis. Police said the toddler's 30-year-old mother also was in the trailer and is in the hospital.
CBS affiliate WTKR reported that the family says Larry was dating Ian's mother. Devine is Ian's uncle.
Gov. Terry McAuliffe met privately with several relatives of the victims. He said the family lost everything and does not have money to bury the child.
A deputy sheriff held reporters at bay as the family members left the meeting. The deputy said they did not want to talk to the news media.
CBS News' Chip Reid spoke to Vincent Donald who was about to sit down in his home in Waverly to watch TV when the tornado slammed into his mobile home shearing off the roof and a wall.
But he doesn't feel lucky to be alive.
"I'm not lucky. I'm blessed," he said.
The National Weather Service has confirmed that two more tornadoes touched down in Virginia during a burst of severe weather that raked various locations around the state.
Meteorologist Mike Rusnak said a survey crew assessed the damage in Essex County and confirmed Thursday that a twister had touched down a day earlier. The tornado left a massive path of destruction, damaging dozens of homes and injuring at least two dozen people, two critically.
Meteorologist Jake Ruckman says crews confirmed that a tornado touched down in Appomattox, leaving an 8- to 10-mile path of debris, injuring seven people and killing one man.
The tornado had already been confirmed in Waverly, where the three were killed on Wednesday. Rusnak says that tornado was rated an EF1, with wind speeds of 100 to 110 mph. He says its path was 9 miles long and 300 yards wide.
The Weather Service is assessing more than a half-dozen suspected tornadoes in the state.
The National Weather Service now says at least 10 tornadoes hit Louisiana on Tuesday, including four EF-2 tornadoes that were responsible for the extreme damage in Convent and LaPlace, along with an EF-2 in Livingston Parish and one in Paincourtville.
Meteorologist Phil Grigsby told The Associated Press on Thursday the tornado that destroyed a Convent trailer park was an EF-2 tornado, with winds of 111-135 mph. Other EF-2 tornadoes were confirmed in Livingston, Paincourtville, and the one in LaPlace, which destroyed or badly damaged at least 200 homes in several subdivisions.
The five other tornadoes were an EF-0, with winds of 65-85 mph. They were in Lacombe, Kenner, Madisonville, Manchac, Montpelier, and Prairieville.
Grigsby said survey teams are investigating several other suspected sites for tornado damage.
Utility crews are working to restore power to tens of thousands of homes and businesses across southern New England after early morning thunderstorms and strong winds knocked down tree limbs and wires.
At an RV park in Convent, Louisiana, CBS News found a story of survival.
Forty-eight-year-old Barbara Posey has a survival story even she can't believe.
"I felt stuff hitting the trailer or the RV. Kept feeling stuff hitting the RV. And then next thing I know I went forward, and next thing I know it was daylight," she explained. "I was riding around and around and around and then I didn't realized until later what it was. It was an electrical box I was riding on."
Her RV now looks like scrap mixed among a mangle of personal treasures.
"Man it's hard to comprehend right now," said Ricky Posey, Barbara's husband.
He left her hospital bedside to find items belonging to her grandmother.
"You can look around and see what one storm can do," he said.
Vehicles were tossed like toys. The tree line is littered with metal. On Wednesday, the governor toured the area by helicopter, from the ground it's obvious what happened was a disaster.
Nearly 49,500 Connecticut customers of Eversource and United Illuminating remained without power early Thursday afternoon, down from more than 70,000 earlier in the day. Eversource officials say power won't be restored to some Connecticut customers until Friday night.
National Grid and Eversource reported a combined 7,600 outages in Massachusetts, down from 17,000. National Grid reported more than 860 outages in Rhode Island, down from almost 13,000.
Winds gusted up to 74 miles per hour during the storms. There were no reports of injuries.
A fallen tree limb delayed MBTA trains on the Worcester/Framingham commuter rail line
The National Weather Service has confirmed that it was a tornado that struck an area of eastern Lancaster County where dozens of buildings were damaged and an Amish schoolhouse was leveled.
The tornado Wednesday night had winds topping 100 mph and left a swath of damage stretching over five miles.
Authorities say 40 to 50 buildings were damaged. Some had roofs torn off. Others collapsed.
Emergency management officials say no deaths or injuries have been reported.
The National Weather Service has confirmed that a tornado touched down in North Carolina's Granville County as storms raced across the Carolinas.
The weather service is also checking reports that tornadoes touched down in Cumberland, Moore, Sampson and Vance counties on Wednesday. Forecasters have said they expect to confirm at least three tornadoes in North Carolina.
Homes and farms were damaged in Granville County.
High winds and heavy rains moved across the Carolinas as part of the same storm system that resulted in deaths in Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina and Virginia.
Thousands of customers were without electricity in the Carolinas, as utility crews worked to restore service.
Crews were working to clear roads Thursday after dozens of cars and trucks were stranded overnight on a snowed-in roadway south of Chicago along the Illinois-Indiana state line.
The National Weather Service reports that heaviest snowfall was in Lake and Porter counties in northwest Indiana, where 12 to 15 inches of snow fell.
Indiana State Police Sgt. Alan Jamerson estimates as many as 30 vehicles were stranded when portions of Indiana 2 in Lake and Porter counties were closed late Wednesday and early Thursday.
Authorities say a 6-year-old girl has died following a three-vehicle crash on a snowy roadway in southern Michigan.
State police say Harlyn Radley died after the crash Wednesday afternoon in Calhoun County's Leroy Township, near Battle Creek.
Investigators say a car driven by the child's mother lost control and collided with another vehicle. A third vehicle then struck the wreckage.
Police say the mother and the driver of one of the other vehicles were injured.
Police say speed and heavy, wet snow were factors in the crash, which happened as a storm dumped snow across the state.
Utility crews in central and eastern Pennsylvania continued restoring power to thousands of customers after strong storms downed trees, caused minor flooding and may have spawned two tornadoes.
The National Weather Service planned to survey damage in Lancaster and Bradford counties to determine whether it was caused by tornadoes. The Bradford County damage was centered in Wyalusing.
Lancaster County officials reported up to 50 buildings have been damaged, including an Amish school house that was leveled. Most of that damage was near the Chester County border, along a two-mile stretch of Old Philadelphia Pike.
There were no immediate reports of injuries or deaths.
Residents are dealing with downed trees and power lines while officials are closely watching some rivers and streams after a wave of strong storms packing heavy rain and wild winds swept across New Jersey.
There are 13,742 homes and businesses without power Thursday.
Jersey Central Power and Light is reporting 8,287 outages, mainly in Monmouth and Morris counties. Most of PSE&G's 3,276 outages are in Middlesex and Camden counties. Atlantic City Electric is reporting 1,729 customers without service, mostly in Gloucester County.
A flood warning remains in effect for Somerset and northwest Warren counties and for parts of the Rockaway and Ramapo rivers. Creeks and streams across the region are running high because of the heavy rain.