a tornado killed at least five people on Wednesday as it struck Missouri in the central United Statesreported to local authorities.

There is “five confirmed dead”, Sergeant Clark Parrott, spokesman for the Missouri traffic police, told AFP.

Different Towns in Bollinger County”have been hit by what appears to be a significant tornado early this morning.” said Sheriff Casey Graham, confirming the tally of five fatalities in a Facebook post.

“Search and rescue efforts have been going on all through the early morning and even now,” he added. Tornadoes, weather phenomena that are difficult to predict, are common in the United States, especially in the center and south of the country.

Storms and tornadoes that swept through several states across the country over the weekend killed at least 32 people. The southern state of Tennessee has been hit hardest, according to official sources, with 15 deaths. A week earlier, a tornado killed 25 people in Mississippi.