Governor of Georgia declares state of emergency after storms kill 11
The governor of Georgia has declared a state of emergency in seven counties - after 11 people were killed in tornado storms on Sunday.
Governor Nathan Deal's office said the emergency areas includes Brooks, Cook and Berrien counties, south central Georgia, near the Florida state line - where the 11 died.
Also included were Atkinson, Colquitt, Lowndes and Thomas counties.
Deal said in a statement that state agencies are "making all resources available" to the affected counties and "our thoughts and prayers are with Georgians suffering from the impact of the storm".
Twenty-three people were also injured and weather experts warn of more deadly storms to come.
The National Weather Service said that south Georgia and also north Florida and parts of Alabama could face more "intense and long-track" tornados on Sunday evening - with strong winds and large hailstones.
A coroner confirmed seven people died at a mobile home park in south Georgia after the storm tore through the area on Sunday morning.
Cook County Coroner Tim Purvis said a tornado "levelled" numerous mobile homes before dawn in the park near Adel. He said emergency services were still searching for survivors hours later.
Purvis estimated the park has about 40 mobile homes and 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. She said the deaths occurred in Cook, Brooks and Berrien counties.
On Saturday, four people were killed in a tornado in Mississippi.
