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AP Photo/David Goldman
World News

Pope writes to communities hit by deadliest US tornado in six years

by Press Association

Twenty-three people were killed and dozens more were injured when the powerful tornado ripped through Lee County. The youngest of those killed was six and the oldest was 89.

Lee County Sheriff Jay Jones said the list of the missing had shrunk from dozens to just seven or eight.

"We've got piles of rubble that we are searching just to make sure," said Opelika Fire Chief Byron Prather Jr. "We don't think we'll find nobody there, but we don't want to leave any stone unturned."

At the Vatican, Pope Francis said he was praying for those affected by the Alabama tornado, saying he is spiritually close to all those who are suffering and grieving.

AP Photo/David Goldman

Francis sent a telegram of condolences to the bishop of Mobile, Alabama, the Most Reverend Thomas Rodi, saying he was saddened to learn of the "tragic loss of life and injuries" caused by the twister.

Francis prayed for peace and strength for the survivors, and that God "may grant eternal rest to the dead, especially the children, and healing and consolation to the injured and those who grieve".

The tornado was an EF4 with winds estimated at 170mph and carved a path of destruction up to nine-tenths of a mile wide in Alabama, scraping up the earth in a phenomenon known as "ground rowing", the National Weather Service said.

It travelled around 70 miles through Alabama and Georgia, where it caused more damage.

Santa Barbara County Fire Department via AP

It was the deadliest tornado to hit the US since May 2013, when an EF5 twister killed 24 people in Moore, Oklahoma.

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