Not less than 10 killed in Texas tornadoes as storms slams central U.S

Not more than 10 people were killed in
the Dallas area from a storm system packing
torrential rains and unleashing a string of tornadoes
that toppled homes, cut power lines and snarled
transport for people returning from the Christmas
holidays.
The worst-hit area was in Garland, northeast of
Dallas, where eight people were killed, cars blown
off highways and homes flattened, officials said on
Sunday.
Three other deaths were reported in the Dallas
metro area, the nation's fourth most populous, with
about 7 million people. Scores of people were
injured in the region, officials said.
"It is total devastation," said Garland Police
spokesman Lieutenant Pedro Barineau said. "It is a
very difficult time to be struck by such a horrible
storm the day after Christmas."
Five of the deaths in Garland were believed to have
been related to vehicles having been struck by a
tornado near State Highway 190 and Interstate 30.
More than 600 structures in North Texas suffered
damage from the tornadoes and storms, officials
said.
Five tornadoes were reported in Texas and one in
Oklahoma on Saturday, the National Weather
Service said. More could be on their way on
Sunday, said the service, which has issued a
tornado watch for several Houston-area counties.
The service has also issued severe weather warning
for large parts of the central United States on
Sunday that include a blizzard warning for parts of
New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma and Kansas and a
flash flood watch stretching from Texas to Ohio.
As of 9 a.m. Central Time on Sunday, there were
about 440 flights canceled in the United States,
according to tracking service FlightAware.com, with
more than half being in Dallas, a major U.S. flight
hub.
The weekend tornadoes follow a series that hit just
before the Christmas holiday, mostly in the U.S.
South, and leaving at least 17 dead.
About 25,000 customers in Texas were without
power on Sunday morning, according to local utility
companies.
In severe weather elsewhere, the service said up to
2 feet (60 cm) of snow could fall in parts of
eastern New Mexico, with drifts as high as 8 feet.
"Travel will be dangerous and impossible across
much of the east," it said.
Much of Arkansas was under a hazardous weather
outlook, with some parts of the state expected to
be hit with up to 6 inches (15 cm) of rain on
Sunday.