Awwal 24, 1432 H/April 28, 2011, SPA -- The death toll in the United States from a series of tornadoes in the south-east rose to more than 230, with officials surveying damage Thursday and warning that there could be more fatalities, according to dpa. Alabama state officials reported more than 130 dead after servere damage in the cities of Tuscaloosa and Birmingham, where several blocks were leveled by the powerful twisters. Hundreds of homes and businesses were destroyed and hundreds more damaged, and dozens of roads were impassable due to toppled trees and other debris after at least one strong tornado in Tuscaloosa. "It literally obliterated blocks and blocks of the city," Tuscaloosa mayor Walter Maddox told broadcaster CNN. In Birmingham, Mayor William Bell described a swath of destruction more than 1,500 metres wide, while Red Cross officials reported a large number of ambulances on the streets of the city. It was "just like taxicabs in New York," Red Cross spokesman Chris Osborne said. Besides Alabama, at least 32 people were killed in the neighbouring state of Mississippi, with dozens more dead in Tennessee, Georgia, Virginia and Kentucky, authorities said. In addition to the tornadoes, the region from Texas to Tennessee was hit by heavy rains, with flooding reported in some areas and hundreds of thousands of people without electricity after the storm system toppled numerous utility poles. Late Wednesday, US President Barack Obama ordered immediate federal help for Alabama including search and rescue units. "Our hearts go out to all those who have been affected by this devastation, and we commend the heroic efforts of those who have been working tirelessly to respond to this disaster," Obama said in a statement. Hundreds of National Guard troops have been mobilized to aid in the hardest-hit areas.
