Weather, Natural Disaster | featured news

A tornado swept through a small eastern Kansas town, killing one person and destroying at least 20 homes, as severe thunderstorms pelted the region with hail that some residents said was the size of baseballs, authorities said early Sunday.

A landslide buried 20 boys and four adults at a Malaysian orphanage Saturday where scores of rescuers were digging by their hands in soil softened by the rains to find the missing, police said.

An 11-year-old boy lived through a tornado that demolished part of his house by hiding in a clothes dryer, according to reports.

Mississippi state officials expect to evacuate 2,000 to 5,000 people in coming days. In Louisiana, more spill gates are opened to divert floodwater.

The swollen Mississippi River rolled south Wednesday as communities along its delta braced for flooding, and vast farms remained under threat as it left a trail of submerged homes.

Officials are warning residents in low-lying areas to leave, as the Mississippi River approached a crest Monday.

Memphis area residents were warned on Saturday that they should not be fooled by sunny skies because the Mississippi River was gradually starting to "wrap its arms" around the city and rise to record levels.

Authorities ordered more evacuations near the Mississippi and Ohio rivers as flood waters continued to surge early Friday, drenching farmlands, highways and homes.

An engorged Mississippi river spilled out onto huge swaths of farmland in the American South and Midwest on Wednesday, prompting massive flooding from Minnesota to Louisiana.

Rescue and relief efforts continue in seven states in the South as hundreds of thousands remain without power. University of Alabama ends school year early. The death toll from this week's tornadoes continued to climb Saturday morning, making the storms fueled by record winds the second worst in history.