At least six dead after terrifying tornado hits near Des Moines, Iowa

Horror tornado in Des Moines, Iowa leaves six dead, including two children

At least six people have been reported dead after a terrifying tornado hit rural communities near the Iowa state capital city of Des Moines, in the US late on Saturday, March 5.

Residents living outside the city of Winterset had earlier been issued urgent warnings, after the huge storm had been reported as making landfall, advising them to seek suitable shelter immediately.

By 9pm local time, search and rescue teams were out in the area, with at least six fatalities reported, including two children under the age of five. The rescue teams reported scenes of devastation with the passing of the storm, with homes seen destroyed, and strewn across the fields, with power cables also brought down.

“It was scariest thing I’ve ever experienced. Our ears started popping, it sounded like a vacuum”, one survivor told local station WHO TV. They described how the freak twister suddenly appeared from nowhere.

One person managed to snap a photo as the huge tornado made its way through the fields and countryside, casting a dark shadow as it went.

“Initial interrogation of photos and videos from around Winterset suggests at least EF3 tornado damage occurred late Saturday afternoon”, reported a statement issued by the US National Weather Service in Des Moines.

“NWS survey teams will be out Sunday to thoroughly investigate the damage, and further assess a potential rating”, it added, as reported by dailystar.co.uk.

Here is a video that claims to be of the tornado, posted to YouTube by a ‘storm chaser’.

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