An outbreak of nasty US Midwest storms has spawned tornadoes that razed homes, flattened trees and tossed cars, injuring two dozen people in Missouri's capital city and killing at least three others elsewhere in the state.
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The National Weather Service confirmed a large and destructive twister moved over Jefferson City on Wednesday night.
Officials said the tornado packed winds of up to 257.48km/h and cut a path about 4.83km long and 1.6km wide, ravaging Jefferson City.
For the fourth consecutive day, tornadoes strafed the middle of the country, this time concentrated in sparsely populated panhandles of Oklahoma and Texas.
The weather service received reports of more than a dozen tornadoes, along with numerous reports of large hail and torrential rain.
Storms this week in the central US have left at least seven people dead, including three near Golden City, Missouri.
While forecasters said the threat of severe weather would ease Friday and into the weekend, another natural disaster could be imminent in Jefferson City.
Most of the city, including the tornado-ravaged section, sits on a bluff overlooking the south side of the Missouri River. The swollen river is projected to top a levee on the north side of the river by Friday, potentially flooding the city's airport, which already has been evacuated.
The National Weather Service said preliminary information indicates the tornado was an EF-3, which typically carry winds up to 260km/h.
The severe weather moved in from Oklahoma, where rescuers struggled to pull people from high water.
Australian Associated Press