Severe storms have torn through the central and southeast US spawning damaging tornadoes, producing massive hail, and killing two people in Tennessee and another in North Carolina when trees toppled onto their vehicles.
The storm that rumbled across northeastern Tennessee brought high winds that knocked down powerlines and trees. Claiborne County Sheriff Bob Brooks said a 22-year-old man was in a car struck by one of the trees.
A health official said the local hospital had received five patients. One died, another was in serious condition and three had injuries that were not life-threatening.
On Wednesday afternoon a tornado emergency, the weather service's highest alert level, was issued for an area south of Nashville including the towns of Spring Hill, Chapel Hill and Eagleville.
A tornado warning had previously been issued in nearby Columbia, about 72km south of Nashville. People in Columbia were injured and homes were damaged, according to Lynn Thompson, assistant director of Maury County 911.
Thompson told The Associated Press that he could not provide any further details: "We're getting overloaded right now."
Powerful storms have destroyed homes as tornadoes tore through central and southern United States. (AP PHOTO)
In North Carolina, a state of emergency was declared for Gaston County on Wednesday evening following a large storm. First responders were working to clear roads of downed power lines and broken trees and were helping residents, officials said.
The New Hope Fire Department responded to a tree down on a car. One person in the car was killed and another was taken to a hospital, officials said.
More than 135,000 customers had lost power in the state as of Wednesday evening, according to PowerOutage.us.
Tornadoes were first reported after dark on Tuesday in parts of Michigan, Indiana and Ohio, according to the National Weather Service. The storms came a day after a deadly twister ripped through an Oklahoma town.
The National Weather Service confirmed tornadoes touched down on Tuesday in western Ohio. It said crews are still surveying areas of Franklin and Butler counties to determine if tornadoes struck there, as well.
Crews on Wednesday were able to survey the damage caused by the strong storms that contained hail and heavy rains and knocked out power to thousands of utility customers.
In Michigan, weather service meteorologist Nathan Jeruzal said the tornadoes there touched down one each in Kalamazoo, Cass and Branch counties - all in the southwestern part of the state. Governor Gretchen Whitmer declared a state of emergency for four counties.
Kalamazoo County's Portage area was hard hit as a FedEx facility was ripped apart and more than a dozen mobile homes were destroyed. About 50 people temporarily were trapped inside the damaged facility because of downed power lines.
Oklahoma is among US states hit hard by powerful storms and tornadoes that destroyed homes. (AP PHOTO)
More than a dozen homes were destroyed in a mobile home park in adjacent Pavilion Township and 16 people were injured, said Kalamazoo County Sheriff Richard Fuller.
In southern Indiana, the National Weather Service confirmed a tornado touched down early Wednesday, damaging homes in a subdivision north of the city of Sellersburg, located about 12 miles (19 kilometers) north of Louisville, Kentucky.
The Clark County Emergency Management Agency said the storm damaged 24 structures.
Tornadoes were also confirmed in Pennsylvania just outside Pittsburgh, in central Arkansas and in northern West Virginia.