Tornadoes strike Arkansas, Illinois, leave 7 dead, dozens injured

A monster storm system tore through the South and Midwest on Friday, spawning deadly tornadoes that shredded homes and shopping centres in Arkansas, collapsed a theatre roof during a heavy metal concert in Illinois and made a deadly sweep across the border into rural Indiana.

The storm caused three fatalities in Sullivan County, Indiana, Emergency Management Director Jim Pirtle said in an email to The Associated Press early Saturday. The storm damaged homes and some residents were missing in the county seat of Sullivan, located near the Illinois state line about 95 miles (152 kilometres) southwest of Indianapolis.

At least one person was killed and more than two dozen were hurt, some critically, in the Little Rock area, authorities said. The town of Wynne in northeastern Arkansas was also devastated, and officials reported two dead there, along with destroyed homes and people trapped in the debris.

Authorities said a theatre roof collapsed during a tornado in Belvidere, Illinois, ..