Storms Thrash Mississippi Basin

The lines of violent thunderstorms that rolled through the South on Wednesday are toned down, but are predicted to dump more rain as they move east. Through Mississippi and Louisiana, strong winds, occasionally spawning tornadoes, blew apart mobile homes, snapped dozens of trees and power lines and ripped the roof off a school while classes were in session.

A tornado touched down in Mississippi during an hours-long storm siege. There were no immediate reports of deaths, but officials said at least eight people were injured, including one in critical condition. Gov. Haley Barbour declared a state of emergency in storm-damaged areas.

Tornado watches were in effect across seven southern states, reports said. As the storm sweeps east, Alabama is flush with rain and much of Georgia is under flash flood watches through Wednesday evening.

Clouds and storms are expected to move in along the east coast over the next 24 hours. The National Weather Service predicts thunderstorms Thursday afternoon in Washington, D.C., and a temperature drop to 50 in New York while the rains move in.

The hardest-hit section of Mississippi was rural Rankin County, southeast of Jackson. At least 17 homes were destroyed in the county and 15 others had major damage, said Amy Carruth, a Mississippi Emergency Management Agency spokeswoman in Brandon.

Along one street, it appeared that only one house escaped without major damage. Splintered pine trees and snapped power lines littered streets. Pink insulation, wood fragments and other debris dangled from the remaining trees. Several vehicles were smashed by fallen trees.

"We've got trees in your yard that don't belong to us," said Sandra Cook, whose home in the community of Monterey was destroyed.

The National Weather Service confirmed that Rankin County was struck by a tornado but had not yet rated its intensity, said forecaster Brandon Henry.

Another tornado destroyed about eight homes and damaged about a dozen other houses, barns and workshops near Heflin in northwest Louisiana. One mobile home was torn down around a woman and her two sons.

"I just hit the floor with my two little boys and covered their heads as best I could," Jennifer Gray said. "And the next thing I know it feels like we're outside. There were no walls, no roof. It was still storming on top of us."

Storm watches and warnings also were posted for sections of Alabama and the Florida Panhandle, the weather service said.

East of Rankin County, high wind blew the roof off Mize High School while classes were in session, school district officials said.

School officials moved the 650 students onto the first floor of the two-story school before the tornado hit and no one was injured, said Superintendent Warren Woodrow. "The teachers did a good job of holding it together," he said.