• Eight deaths in Kansas involved more than 50 vehicles.
• Wildfires and strong winds killed four people in Oklahoma.
• The governor said six people in Mississippi were missing.
  

Washington: Local authorities say the death to tornadoes and storms that ravaged the central and southern U.S. over the weekend has risen to at least 40 people, with more and more injuries.

Local news channels throughout the affected area showed videos of roofs were torn off houses, trees were cut down and trucks were overturned by strong winds.

Local police said eight people died in a crash involving more than 50 cars, due to low visibility in a “severe sandstorm.”

In Oklahoma, the local emergency administration said four people were killed, with wildfires and strong winds sweeping across the state.

The Mississippi Governor said in an article on X that at least six people were killed there and three were still missing.

“We are actively monitoring severe tornadoes and storms that affect many states in the South and Midwest,” President Donald Trump reported on the Truth Society earlier Sunday.

National Guard units were deployed in Arkansas, and officials said three people died, 32 of them were injured in the storm.

“The loss is overwhelming,” Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe said in a statement after visiting some of the state’s worst-hit areas.

“Houses and businesses have been destroyed, the entire community has no power, and it is not easy to restore the road.”

Earlier, the Missouri Highway Patrol confirmed 12 storm-related deaths and shared images of ships that piled up on weather-destroying docks.

In Texas, local authorities say four people died in car accidents related to sandstorms and fires that reduced road visibility.

Last year, the U.S. was the second highest tornado in terms of tornadoes, with nearly 1,800 people, only lagging behind in 2004, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).