Deadly tornado outbreak hits the U.S.

Wednesday, December 24, 2014, 8:31 AM - Severe weather had deadly consequences on Tuesday evening.

At least five tornadoes were reported in the southern United States, leading to four deaths and fifty people injured. The twisters also caused massive damage to homes, commercial buildings and vehicles.

Mississippi was among the worst hit. If the tornadoes are confirmed, it will be the deadliest December tornado outbreak since 1953.

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A state of emergency was declared for the two counties where the four deaths were reported. Officials were hard at work after the systems hit, trying to clear up debris from the roads in hopes of opening up the travel routes before the holidays. A hospital in the area was also left without power. Eight people had to be immediately transferred to a nearby medical centre.

Other states affected include Louisiana where a tornado knocked down power lines, leaving many people in the dark. Trees were uprooted and one person's home was left without a roof after the event.

Georgia and Florida are dealing with flooding with flash flood warnings in place. Additionally, Tallahasee declared a flash flood emergency. Georgia was still under a tornado watch in the early hours of Christmas Eve.

But is this sort of weather unexpected? Doctor Doug Gillham, meteorologist at The Weather Network, clarified that it's not rare to see.

"The southeastern states have two severe weather seasons. The primary season is in the spring but the second is during November and December," Gillham said. "It's not that unusual to see a severe weather outbreak during this month."

And while we may not have any upcoming tornadoes in Canada, the energy from these systems is bringing strong weather to the country.

"That's the beginning of the system that's impacting us Christmas Eve and Christmas morning," Gillham explained. "It's associated with the development of the powerful storm impacting Atlantic Canada much of Christmas Day."

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