State Of Emergency Declared In Georgia After Tornadoes, Storms Hit South, Kill 26

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp declared a state of emergency Sunday after severe storms and tornadoes battered the South over the weekend.

Kemp issued the order after at least 26 were killed in Mississippi and neighboring Alabama due to storms that began Friday night and ravaged parts of the states over the weekend.

Residents of Georgia saw a severe storm system sweeping through the state Sunday and producing "thunderstorms, high-velocity straight-line winds and multiple tornadoes," Kemp said, as per NBC News.

"As we continue to monitor the weather and work with local partners to address damage throughout the day, I ask all Georgians to join us in praying for those impacted," the governor added.

Kemp's declaration, which will reportedly expire Friday, will allow additional resources to be brought into Georgia to help offset the damage from the severe weather.

"All resources of the State of Georgia" will be made available to "assist in preparation, response and recovery activities throughout the affected areas, and the Georgia Emergency Management and Homeland Security Agency shall activate the Georgia Emergency Operations Plan," the order stated.

Severe thunderstorm warnings were issued in parts of Georgia through Sunday, and two tornadoes struck Troup County and Baldwin County and left a trail of damage, according to 11Alive.

Storms that pummeled the South killed at least 25 people in Mississippi and another individual in Alabama. Tornado-struck areas were left with collapsed roofs, downed power lines and fallen trees.

Mississippi's town of Rolling Fork, with its 2,000 residents, was particularly devastated as homes were brought down to rubble and cars were flipped over.

"How anybody survived is unknown by me," a resident named Rodney Porter told CBS News.

Porter lives about 20 miles south of Rolling Fork and drove to the devastated town Friday night to offer assistance.

He saw "total devastation" when he arrived and said he could smell natural gas. The Mississippi resident could also hear people's cries for help coming from the dark.

"Houses are gone, houses stacked on top of houses with vehicles on top of that," Porter added.

Another resident, Annette Body, drove from Belozi to the storm-ravaged Silver City and was shocked to see the damage.

"Cried last night, cried this morning," she said as she surveyed the destruction and the destroyed homes, according to the outlet.

"They said you need to take cover, but it happened so fast a lot of people didn't even get a chance to take cover," Body added.

President Joe Biden declared a major disaster in Mississippi Sunday and ordered federal aid to supplement recovery efforts in light of the devastating storms.