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Suffolk, Virginia: Three tornadoes ripped through Virginia, with one hop-scotching across the southeastern part of the state and leaving behind a 40km trail of smashed homes, tossed cars and more than 200 injured residents.
The twister in this city outside Norfolk cut a fickle, zig-zagging path through neighbourhoods, obliterating some homes and spraying splintered wood across lawns while leaving those standing just a few feet away untouched.
Buses took residents to safety, steering clear of downed power lines, tree limbs and a confetti of debris.
Insulation, wiring and twisted metal hung from the front of a mall that was stripped bare of its facing. At another store, the tin roof was rolled up like a sardine can. Some of the cars and sport utility vehicles in the parking lot laid on top of others.
"It's just a bunch of broken power poles, telephone lines and sad faces," said Richard Allbright, who works for a tree removal service in Driver and had been out for hours trying to clear the roads.
Governor Timothy M. Kaine declared a state of emergency for the areas of southeastern Virginia struck by the twisters.
Confirmation
The National Weather Service confirmed that tornadoes struck Suffolk, Colonial Heights and Brunswick County.
Meteorologist Bryan Jackson described Suffolk's as a "major tornado". Jackson said the Brunswick County tornado was estimated at 138km/h to 177km/h, and cut a 275-metre path of destruction.
The first tornado touch-ed down around 1pm (1700 GMT) on Monday in Brunswick County, said Mike Rusnak, a weather service meteorologist in Wakefield. The second struck Colonial Heights around 3.40pm (1940 GMT), he said.
The third touched down multiple times, between 4.30 to 5pm (2030 to 2100 GMT), and is believed to have caused damage over a 40km path from Suffolk to Norfolk, Rusnak said.
At least 200 people were injured in Suffolk and 18 others were injured in Colonial Heights, south of Richmond, said Bob Spiel-denner from the Virginia Department of Emergency Management. In Colonial Heights, the storm overturned cars and damaged buildings in the Southpark Mall area. Suffolk city spokeswoman Dana Woodson said the area around Sentara Obici Hospital and in the community of Driver, located within the city, were hardest hit.
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