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Violent tornadoes that ripped through parts of the U.S. proved deadly as well as destructive as whipping winds moved east into the Mississippi Valley and Deep South on Saturday, with at least 17 people killed and scores of homes decimated.
The most fatalities as of Saturday morning were in Missouri, authorities said, which was pounded by scattered twisters overnight that resulted in at least 11 deaths. The Missouri State Highway Patrol also reported that multiple people were injured.
Tad Peters and his dad, Richard, had pulled over to fuel up their pickup truck in Rolla, Missouri Friday night when they heard tornado sirens and saw other motorists flee the interstate to park.
“Whoa, is this coming? Oh, it’s here. It’s here,” Tad Peters can be heard saying on a video he shot from inside the truck and that has gone viral. “Look at all that debris. Ohhh. My God, we are in a torn —"
His father then rolled up the window.
They were headed to Indiana for a weightlifting competition but decided to turn around and head back home to Norman, Oklahoma, about six hours away, where they were greeted by wildfires.
High winds and dry conditions also raised the risk of wildfires. In Oklahoma, nearly 300 homes were damaged or destroyed.