Tornadoes hit American midwest killing 8
Tornadoes are thought to have killed eight
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Monday, 26, May 2008 12:03
As many as eight people are believed to have been killed by tornadoes rumbling across the American midwest, reports say.
Severe thunderstorms and tornadoes are thought to have caused seven deaths in north-east Iowa and at least 50 injuries have been reported.
Dozens of homes and facilities in Parkersburg - about 80 miles north-east of Des Moines - have been "reduced to rubble", residents told the Associated Press news agency.
In addition to the chaos in Iowa, at least 20 people in Minnesota are also unaccounted for and a two-year-old has been killed in the suburb of Hugo. The child's sibling was critically injured.
Hugo's city administrator Mike Ericson described the situation as "horrible".
"The citizens are very shook and scared," he told the Associated Press.
This time of year sees "tornado season" bringing severe weather to areas of the US but 2008 has experienced a record number and caused the death toll to rise, USA Today recently stated.
Citing the Weather Channel, the newspaper said it has been the deadliest season for tornadoes in the last decade and the seventh worst since 1950, when records began.
As of May 11th 2008, there is believed to have been 47 separate twisters, bringing the year's total to 636.