The passage of dozens of large tornadoes has caused much destruction in the US Midwest. The city of Omaha and the surrounding area in Nebraska have been hit particularly hard. About 150 houses were damaged or even destroyed, local media reported on Saturday evening (local time). Despite the extensive damage, people miraculously remained unharmed, the governor said.
Images show how only rubble remains of buildings. There were also reports of a dozen injuries, but no fatalities. Thousands of households were without power. The weather service estimates the tornadoes’ wind gusts will reach about 135 miles per hour.
Omaha Police Chief Todd Schmaderer said he was fortunate that there were so few injuries. The warning systems in the city, which has about half a million inhabitants, have worked well. They have saved lives, it still sounds. “It is an extraordinary miracle that we survived such a storm without any fatalities,” Nebraska Governor Jim Pillen said during a visit to the city.
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Minden, Iowa. — © AP
In Lancaster County, about 70 people were rescued from an industrial building that was knocked down by the storm. A tornado crossed the Missouri River into the neighboring state of Iowa. There was a lot of damage in the town of Minden. About fifty houses were completely destroyed.
Dozens of tornadoes and major hurricanes were reported in five states on Friday and Saturday alone, according to CNN. Severe weather warnings were in effect for about nine million residents.
Experts attribute the increase in natural disasters in the US, such as storms, floods and wildfires, to the effects of climate change.
