Deadly storms packed with tornadoes and floods sweeping across the southern parts of the US have claimed the lives of at least 11 people. According to reports, a law enforcement officer and a fire fighter were killed in Texas on Saturday (January 11, 2020) morning while another was critically injured as he was responding to an accident in Lubbock.
A man drowned in Oklahoma after he was swept away by floodwaters while getting out of his stalled truck, the Oklahoma Highway Patrol said.
An elderly couple was found dead on Saturday near their demolished trailer in Louisiana, and another person was killed on an icy highway in Iowa after his truck overturned, local media reported.
Hundreds of thousands of people were left without power from Texas to Ohio.
Some highways were closed in Oklahoma and Arkansas due to flooding, and more than 1,200 flights were cancelled at Chicago's two international airports, according to the Chicago Department of Aviation's online flight-tracking website.
Many streams were already at or near flood levels because of earlier storms, and heavy rains could lead to flash floods across the region, forecasters said.
(With inputs from agency)
