ADEL, Ga. (AP) - The Latest on severe weather in the South (all times local):
11:20 a.m.
A local official in Georgia who represents an area hit hard by severe weather over the weekend has called on the federal government for help.
Dougherty County Commission Chairman Christopher Cohilas said Monday that requests were being delayed by red tape. He called on President Donald Trump to help cut through the bureaucracy.
Four people were killed and widespread damage has been reported in Dougherty County as of Sunday night.
"We've been begging for the help of FEMA," he said at a press conference in Albany, Georgia. "We're not asking for money right now. We're asking for resources."
At least 19 people were killed following severe weather, including tornadoes, in the southeastern U.S. over the weekend.
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9:50 a.m.
Residents of Big Pine Estates waited outside the mobile home park in Albany early Monday, hoping to get inside and look at what remained of their belongings after the storm hit Sunday afternoon.
Fire and rescue crews were searching through the debris, looking for people who might have become trapped when the storm came through. A total of 19 people have died in two days as the storm system tore through the Southeast, including 15 in south Georgia alone.
Meanwhile, fire and rescue crews searched the debris looking for people who might have become trapped when the storm hit. Authorities said a total of four people died Sunday in Dougherty County, which includes the city of Albany. That brings a total of 19 deaths across the Southeast, including 15 in south Georgia alone.
Dougherty County Coroner Michael Fowler said the Georgia fatalities include four people who died Sunday in the county that includes the city of Albany.
Rescue workers say people are missing from the trailer park, but they are not sure how many. They also are not certain whether the residents may be staying with friends or family at other locations.
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9 a.m.
Seventy-four-year-old Chuck Stafford was watching the Atlanta Falcons rout the Green Bay Packers for the NFC title Sunday afternoon in the mobile home park in Albany where he's lived for more than 31 years when the weather started getting bad.
He had gotten up to go to the restroom during a commercial when the storm hit. He said the wind started blowing and the mobile home started shaking. Stafford said he "grabbed hold of my washer and dryer, got my legs spread apart and hunched over."
The storm was over in a few minutes. Stafford said he walked up the hall to where he had been sitting watching the game and all the trailer's windows were blown out and glass was everywhere.
Stafford was among the residents waiting with his sister at the Big Pine Estates mobile home park early Monday, hoping to get back inside his trailer. He was worried about his belongings getting wet.
Meanwhile, fire and rescue crews searched the debris looking for people who might have become trapped when the storm hit. Authorities said a total of four people died Sunday in Dougherty County, which includes the city of Albany. That brings a total of 19 deaths across the Southeast, including 15 in south Georgia alone.
Dougherty County Coroner Michael Fowler said the Georgia fatalities include four people who died Sunday in the county that includes the city of Albany.
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8:45 a.m.
The storm system that killed at least 19 and caused destruction across the Southeast also downed trees and power lines around Florida.
Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum said the city was bringing in additional crews to restore power to over 30,000 customers who lost electricity Sunday.
Gillum told The Tallahassee Democrat (http://on.tdo.com/2jhnGkp ) that state officials quickly coordinated with local authorities to clear road debris. Forecasters said the storms hadn't caused as much damage as Hurricane Hermine in September.
Palm Beach County officials closed two schools Monday because storms had bent fences and scattered bleachers and other sports equipment into nearby streets.
Volusia County Emergency Management Director Jim Judge said a funnel cloud was spotted Sunday evening near Daytona International Speedway, but there were no reports of tornadoes touching down.
Minor flooding was reported across Florida's Panhandle.
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8:15 a.m.
North Carolina escaped most of the problems associated with strong storms that across the South over the weekend and killed at least 19 people. But the Charlotte area was dealing with flooding from heavy rains Monday morning.
The National Weather Service issued a flood warning for urban areas and small streams in Charlotte, as well as for several streams in Cabarrus County just east of Charlotte.
No serious injuries have been reported.
Fallen trees and flooded roads were reported around the Charlotte area.
The heaviest rain had moved out by 5 a.m., but some areas were still experiencing some flooding. Parts of the city received nearly 2 inches of rain.
Duke Energy reported about 900 customers without electricity in North Carolina.
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7:45 a.m.
An additional death in southwest Georgia is being blamed on severe storms that marched across the South over the weekend.
Dougherty County Coroner Michael Fowler says a total of four people died in the county Sunday amid the weather that killed at least 19 people in the Deep South.
Fowler did not give any details Monday morning about the latest death and the victim's name wasn't immediately released.
Fowler said authorities there are trying to determine if they need to keep searching for victims and that it's been hard to make sure everyone is accounted for.
The vast storm system tore through the Southeast over two days, spawning apparent tornadoes, pulverizing mobile homes and leaving other destruction in its wake.
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7:15 a.m.
Severe storms that have killed at least 18 across the South, caused damage in north Georgia and at least one county to close schools Monday.
WSB-TV reports (http://2wsb.tv/2iUWpWr ) that several roads were closed in Gordon County after strong winds knocked down trees and power lines and heavy rain caused widespread flooding.
Gordon County school officials called off classes because of the damage and closed roads, though staff members were asked to report by 10 a.m. if possible.
Authorities said the vast storm system claimed at least 18 lives over two days as it tore through the Southeast, spawning apparent tornadoes, pulverizing mobile homes and leaving other destruction in its wake.
Authorities in south Georgia's Cook County confirmed seven deaths at a mobile home park in the rural community of Adel, where about half of the 40 homes were leveled.
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6:30 a.m.
The National Weather Service has confirmed two tornadoes struck South Carolina over the weekend, injuring one woman as storms that moved across the South over the weekend killed at least 18.
The weather service says a tornado touched down about 3:45 p.m. Saturday in Barnwell County and moved into Bamberg County. The other occurred in Orangeburg County a few minutes later.
Forecasters said Sunday that both storms had been confirmed as tornadoes.
A woman was trapped in a mobile home that was damaged near Blackville. She was taken to a hospital but there was no word on her injuries.
No injuries were reported in the twister in Orangeburg County.
Hundreds of trees were blown down and several homes and barns were damaged.
There was a tornado watch Sunday afternoon for six counties from Aiken to Manning, but no tornadoes were reported.
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3:30 a.m.
Authorities say a vast storm system that kicked up apparent tornadoes, shredded mobile homes and left other destruction scattered around the Southeast has claimed at least 18 lives on its two-day assault on the region.
Severe weather put millions of people in the South on edge and left seven dead in one south Georgia trailer park alone Sunday. Authorities reported four deaths Saturday in Mississippi as the storm system ramped up. It was so big parts of it threatened the Carolinas and north Florida.
Authorities in south Georgia's Cook County confirmed seven people died at a mobile home park in the rural community of Adel, where about half of the 40 homes were leveled. Debris lay about not far from mobile homes largely untouched but emptied of survivors and cordoned off by police.
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8:45 p.m.
Residents of Albany, the largest city in southwest Georgia, are reporting trees down, roadside flooding and other damage after being struck by the severe storm system blamed for at least 18 weekend deaths in the South.
Bridgit Simmons was with her parents, her daughter and her grandson in their brick home in that community when the sky grew dark Sunday afternoon.
"I was in the den and I heard that loud roar and I grabbed the baby and I said, 'Let's go guys. This is it.' We laid down and that was it." She said the wind was so loud "you could hear it beating back and forth."
But within a few minutes the storm had passed and their home was mostly unscathed, save for a carport that collapsed atop two cars. And when she opened a door to see what had happened, there was a bright burst of light because "all the trees were gone" that normally shade the yard.
Authorities reported three deaths in the county where Albany is located.
Police cars and fire trucks were seen racing all over with their sirens on and utility trucks deployed with yellow lights flashing.
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7:15 p.m.
Emergency officials are reporting three additional deaths in southern Georgia from violent storms, bringing the overall toll to at least 18 people killed over the weekend by a severe weather system sweeping the Southeast.
Catherine Howden, a spokeswoman for the Georgia Emergency Management Agency, said Sunday evening that three additional deaths have been confirmed in Georgia's Dougherty County. Local officials say search and rescue operations are underway after a reported tornado caused widespread destruction in the county Sunday evening.
Before the three latest deaths were confirmed, Georgia officials had reported 12 deaths statewide. Howden said one of those was reported in error.
Four died Saturday in Mississippi.
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4:55 p.m.
An emergency official says more people have been killed as violent storms tear across southern Georgia.
Sebon Burns, chief deputy emergency management director for Georgia's Dougherty County, said "fatalities and a lot of injuries" have been reported since an apparent tornado cut a path through the county Sunday afternoon.
Burns said he could not give even an estimate for how many people died.
Earlier Sunday the Georgia Emergency Management Agency reported 12 total deaths had been confirmed in three other Georgia counties after storms hit before dawn Sunday.
A wide area of Georgia and parts of South Carolina and Florida remained under tornado watches Sunday evening.
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4:10 p.m.
Emergency officials say the death toll in Georgia has risen to 12 people killed as violent storms tear across the region.
The Georgia Emergency Management and Homeland Security Agency gave the updated figure in a news release Sunday afternoon. The agency had reported total 11 deaths earlier in the day.
Eight deaths were confirmed in Cook County in rural southern Georgia. County Coroner Tim Purvis said Sunday morning that seven people were found dead at a mobile home park struck by an apparent tornado. It was not known if the additional death was discovered there as well. Purvis did not immediately return a phone call.
There were also two deaths apiece in neighboring Brooks and Berrien counties.
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2:30 p.m.
A woman says she and her parents were fortunate to escape with their lives as a storm destroyed their home in rural south Georgia.
Jenny Bullard had her arm in a sling Sunday afternoon as she searched for salvageable belongings amid the rubble that was her family's Cook County home. An apparent tornado smashed through the center of the brick house before dawn.
The 19-year-old Bullard says a wall and a door fell on her, but she managed to reach her father and help free him from a pile of debris. They escaped with her mother through a hole in the wall of what had been a home office.
Out of 11 confirmed storm deaths in Georgia, the coroner said seven people were killed in Cook County. Bullard says it's "a horrible tragedy."
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12 p.m.
The governor of Georgia has declared a state of emergency in seven counties that have suffered deaths, injuries and severe damage from weekend storms.
Gov. Nathan Deal's office said Sunday the emergency declaration includes Brooks, Cook and Berrien counties - where 11 people have been confirmed dead in south central Georgia near the Florida state line.
Also included were Atkinson, Colquitt, Lowndes and Thomas counties.
Deal said in a statement that state agencies are "making all resources available" to affected counties and "our thoughts and prayers are with Georgians suffering from the storm's impact."
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10:40 a.m.
Tornado activity is remaining a threat across south Georgia, where 11 people were killed early Sunday.
The National Weather Service said Sunday that southern Georgia, northern Florida and the corner of southeastern Alabama could face "intense and long track" tornadoes, scattered damaging winds and large hail.
The weather service said that a "severe thunderstorm and tornado outbreak is expected today across north Florida and south Georgia, with the significant severe threat also expected to extend southward into central Florida and northeastward into South Carolina this evening."
Four people were killed in a tornado in Mississippi on Saturday.
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10 a.m.
A coroner says seven people have been confirmed dead at a mobile home park in south Georgia after a powerful storm tore through the area overnight.
Cook County Coroner Tim Purvis said an apparent tornado "leveled" numerous mobile homes before dawn Sunday in the park near Adel. He said emergency responders were still searching for survivors hours later.
Purvis estimated the park has about 40 mobile homes total and roughly half of them were destroyed.
Catherine Howden of the Georgia Emergency Management Agency put the death toll from severe weather in the state to 11, with 23 injured. She said the deaths occurred in Cook, Brooks and Berrien counties near the Georgia-Florida line.
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9:45 a.m.
A coroner says at least five people have been confirmed dead at a mobile home park in south Georgia that was devastated by a powerful storm overnight.
Brooks County Coroner Michael Miller said Sunday he was called to assist in neighboring Cook County, where an apparent tornado that struck before dawn left "mobile homes thrown everywhere." Miller said emergency responders were still searching the debris for survivors hours later.
Miller said two people died in Brooks County when an apparent tornado tossed a mobile home roughly 100 yards into the middle of a highway.
Catherine Howden of the Georgia Emergency Management Agency put the death toll from severe weather in the state to 11, with 23 injured. She said the deaths occurred in Cook, Brooks and Berrien counties near the Georgia-Florida line.
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8:52 a.m.
State emergency management officials say 11 people are dead and 23 are injured after severe weather struck central Georgia.
Catherine Howden of the Georgia Emergency Management Agency said Sunday morning that the deaths occurred in Cook, Brooks and Berrien counties.
She said the deaths were related to severe weather but could not specify whether tornadoes were the cause. Tornado warnings had been issued for parts of Georgia overnight.
Local officials are still assessing the area. No other information was immediately available.
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