Photo gallery: Tornadoes devastate the South

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A powerful storm system wiped out entire towns in the South on Wednesday killing more than 200 people.

Tornado Destruction

Tornado Destruction — Billy Hughey sits in what is left of his living room floor which was destroyed by Wednesday's, tornado near Tanner, Ala. on Thursday, April 28, 2011. President Barack Obama said he would visit Alabama Friday to view damage and meet with the governor and families devastated by the storms. (AP Photo/The Decatur Daily, Gary Cosby Jr.) Gary Cosby Jr.

Severe Weather

Severe Weather — Tuscaloosa Fire Department firefighter Josh Pate looks for a missing child at the Rosedale Courts housing complex Thursday, April 28, 2011, after a tornado struck Tuscaloosa, Ala., on Wednesday. (AP Photo/David Bundy) DAVID BUNDY

Barack Obama, Michelle Obama in Alabama

Barack Obama, Michelle Obama in Alabama — President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama, accompanied by Holt Elementary School Principal Debbie Crawford, right, comfort residents at a tornado rally point at the school in Holt, Ala., Friday, April 29, 2011. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak) Charles Dharapak

Barack Obama in Alabama

Barack Obama in Alabama — President Barack Obama and Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley greet residents in the Alberta neighborhood in Tuscaloosa, Ala., Friday, April 29, 2011, as they toured tornado damage. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak) Charles Dharapak

Severe Weather Mississippi

Severe Weather Mississippi — An aerial taken on Thursday April 28, 2011 shows that the tornado that hit Smithville Miss., on Wednesday destroyed nearly the entire town. (AP Photo/Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal, Thomas Wells) Thomas Wells

Severe Weather Alabama

Severe Weather Alabama — Gladys Wilson leans on her cane as she finds a moment to sit down in front of her tornado-ravaged home in Tuscaloosa, Ala., Friday, April 29, 2011. (AP Photo/Dave Martin) Dave Martin

Clark County, Miss.

Clark County, Miss. — Billy Fain and his daughter, Rachel, try to salvage their belongings, after severe storms moved through, Thursday, April 28, 2011 in Clark County, Miss., Thursday April 28, 2011. The storms left wide swaths of destruction in Kemper and Clarke counties in east central Mississippi, near the Alabama line (AP Photo/The Meridan Star, Paula Merritt) PAULA MERRITT

Severe Weather Tennessee

Severe Weather Tennessee — A hog looks for food among debris from a destroyed home on Thursday, April 28, 2011, in Cleveland, Tenn. The area was hit Wednesday by tornadoes. (AP Photo/BIll Poovey) Bill Poovey

Virginia Damage

Virginia Damage — Shane Gilland sorts through the wreckage of his father's home in Bethel, Va., Friday, April 29, 2011. Gilland's father James and step mother Gail survived a tornado in the house early Thursday. (AP Photo/Jeff Gentner) Jeff Gentner

Bethel, Virginia

Bethel, Virginia — Gail Gilland, 58, holds her 6-month-old grandson Major Sealey, amid the wreckage of her home in Bethel,Va., Friday, April 29, 2011. in Bethel, Va. Gilland survived a tornado early Thursday morning by hiding under her bed and riding out the storm while her husband James was trapped in the hallway. (AP Photo/Jeff Gentner) Jeff Gentner

Aftermath Tuscaloosa

Aftermath Tuscaloosa — Jacqueline Wilson picks through the remains of her mothers tornado ravaged home in Tuscaloosa, Ala., Friday, April 29, 2011. (AP Photo/Dave Martin) Dave Martin

Severe Weather

Severe Weather — Tornado survivors clean up in Bethel, Va., Friday, April 29, 2011. The death toll from a system of ferocious storms that spawned tornadoes as they roared across the South has risen as Virginia and Tennessee officials raised their counts for each state. (AP Photo/Jeff Gentner) Jeff Gentner

Severe Weather

Severe Weather — People reclaim some of their belongings in the Alberta City neighborhood Thursday April 28, 2011, after a tornado struck Tuscaloosa, Ala. the day before. Massive tornadoes tore a town-flattening streak across the South, killing at least 269 people in six states and forcing rescuers to carry some survivors out on makeshift stretchers of splintered debris. (AP Photo/David Bundy) David Bundy

Andy Page

Andy Page — Andy Page cries as he sits with his cat, Ellie, placed in a pet carrier, in his demolished apartment in Trenton, Ga. Thursday, April 28, 2011, after overnight storms hit the North Georgia and Chattanooga, Tenn. area. Page has several cats and Ellie was the last one he was looking for. (AP Photo/Chattanooga Times Free Press, Angela Lewis) MANDATORY CREDIT Angela Lewis

Tornado Destruction

Tornado Destruction — Chad Willis searches through the remains of his mobile home which was rolled and crushed by Wednesdays, tornado near Tanner, Ala. on Thursday, April 28, 2011. Firefighters searched one splintered pile after another for survivors Thursday, combing the remains of houses and neighborhoods pulverized by the nation's deadliest tornado outbreak in almost four decades. At least 280 people were killed across six states — more than two-thirds of them in Alabama, where large cities bore the half-mile-wide scars the twisters left behind. (AP Photo/The Decatur Daily, Gary Cosby Jr.) Gary Cosby Jr.

Severe Weather Alabama

Severe Weather Alabama — Francine Rollins and Rondroka Long sit amidst the rubble of what was once their neighborhood, Thursday, April 28, 2011, in Tuscaloosa, Ala. Massive tornadoes tore a town-flattening streak across the South, killing at least 266 people in six states and forcing rescuers to carry some survivors out on makeshift stretchers of splintered debris. (AP Photo/Robert Ray) Robert Ray

Severe Weather Alabama

Severe Weather Alabama — Two residents hug as they meet, Thursday, April 28, 2011, in Pleasant Grove, Ala., a day after severe weather struck the area. President Barack Obama said he would travel to Alabama on Friday to view storm damage and meet Gov. Robert Bentley and affected families. (AP Photo/The Birmingham News, Hal Yeager) HAL YEAGER

Severe Weather Georgia

Severe Weather Georgia — Workers use heavy machinery to clear power lines in Ringgold, Ga. Thursday, April 28, 2011, after a tornado hit the area Wednesday night. Seven people were killed in Georgia's Catoosa County, including Ringgold, where a suspected tornado flattened about a dozen buildings and trapped an unknown number of people. (AP Photo/Billy Weeks) Billy Weeks

Severe Weather Tennessee

Severe Weather Tennessee — A horse grazes with debris all around on Thursday, April 28, 2011, after a tornado hit Wednesday in Apison, Tenn. (AP Photo/Erik Schelzig) Erik Schelzig

Tornado damage

Tornado damage — Tommy Stiles finds the branch that injured his back as he took cover in the bedroom while a tornado struck his home in Phil Campbell, Ala., on Thursday, April 28, 2011. (AP Photo/TimesDaily, Jim Hannon) Jim Hannon

Severe Weather Alabama

Severe Weather Alabama — This aerial photo shows the destruction left a by a deadly tornado of The Wrangler facility in Hakleburg, Ala. on Thursday, April 28, 2011. President Barack Obama said he would visit Alabama Friday to view damage and meet with the governor and families devastated by the storms. Obama has already expressed condolences by phone to Gov. Robert Bentley and approved his request for emergency federal assistance. (AP Photo/The Times Daily, Matt McKean) Matt McKean

Severe Weather

Severe Weather — A large tornado sweeps through Limestone County, south of Athens, Ala., near Stewart Road, Wednesday afternoon, April 27, 2011. (AP Photo/The Decatur Daily, Gary Cosby Jr.) Gary Cosby Jr

Severe Weather

Severe Weather — First responders carry an elderly woman away after they rescued her from the rubble of her home, after a tornado struck Wednesday, April 27, 2011 in Phil Campbell, Ala. (AP Photo/TimesDaily, Daniel Giles) Daniel Giles

Severe Weather

Severe Weather — Residents survey the destruction after a tornado hit Pratt City, Ala. just north of downtown Birmingham, Ala., on Wednesday, April 27, 2011. A wave of severe storms laced with tornadoes strafed the South on Wednesday, killing over 200 people around the region and splintering buildings across swaths of an Alabama university town. (AP Photo/Butch Dill) Butch Dill

Severe weather

Severe weather — Michael Dunn is hugged by his mother Patricia Dunn as they stand in the road that lead to his house which was completely destroyed after a tornado touched down, Wednesday, April 27, 2011 in Concord, Ala. (AP Photo/Birmingham News, Jeff Roberts) MAGS OUT; NO SALES JEFF ROBERTS

Severe Weather

Severe Weather — An unidentified emergency responder combs through the wreckage of a destroyed home after a tornado touched down, Wednesday, April 27, 2011 in Smithville, Miss.(AP Photo/The Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal, C. Todd Sherman) C. Todd Sherman

Severe Weather Alabama

Severe Weather Alabama — Tiffany Wood walks through her backyard looking for belongings Thursday, April 28, 2011 after a tornado hit Pleasant Grove just west of downtown Birmingham, Ala., Wednesday afternoon. (AP Photo/Butch Dill) Butch Dill

Severe Weather Alabama

Severe Weather Alabama — Vicki Wood searches through what is left of her daughter's home Thursday, April 28, 2011 after a tornado hit Pleasant Grove just west of downtown Birmingham, Ala., Wednesday afternoon. (AP Photo/Butch Dill) Butch Dill

Severe Weather Alabama

Severe Weather Alabama — Residents search through what is left of their homes after Wednesday's tornado hit Pleasant Grove just west of downtown Birmingham, Ala., on Thursday, April 28, 2011. (AP Photo/Butch Dill) Butch Dill

Severe Weather

Severe Weather — Firefighters search the rubble of a home in the Alberta City section of Tuscaloosa, Ala., on Thursday, April 29, 2011. Dozens of tornadoes ripped through the South, flattening homes and businesses and killing at least 215 people in six states in the deadliest outbreak in nearly 40 years. (AP Photo/Jay Reeves) Jay Reeves

Severe Weather Alabama

Severe Weather Alabama — Mandy Coolidge collects photos Thursday, April 28, 2011, in Birmingham, Ala., from the debris after a tornado hit Pleasant Grove, just west of downtown Birmingham, a day earlier. (AP Photo/Butch Dill) Butch Dill

Severe Weather Georgia

Severe Weather Georgia — John Franklin, Jr, and his wife Kathy, help recover belongings from their son's home, in Bartow County, Ga. on Thursday, April 28, 2011. Dozens of tornadoes ripped through the South, flattening homes and businesses and killing at least 215 people in six states in the deadliest outbreak in nearly 40 years. (AP Photo/Atlanta Journal & Constitution, Bob Andres) Bob Andres

Severe Weather Georgia

Severe Weather Georgia — Rescue workers search a destroyed business on State Route 151 in Ringgold, Ga. Thursday morning April 28, 2011. Dozens of tornadoes ripped through the South, flattening homes and businesses and killing at least 215 people in six states in the deadliest outbreak in nearly 40 years. (AP Photo/Atlanta Journal & Constitution, Brant Sanderlin) Brant Sanderlin

Severe Weather Georgia

Severe Weather Georgia — Morgan Cantrell gives her nephew, Brayson Hyde, a hug after staying with her family during the storm, in Bartow County, Ga. on Thursday, April 28, 2011. Dozens of tornadoes ripped through the South, flattening homes and businesses and killing at least 215 people in six states in the deadliest outbreak in nearly 40 years. (AP Photo/Atlanta Journal & Constitution, Bob Andres) Bob Andres

Storms overwhelm emergency services

Storms overwhelm emergency services

Southerners found their emergency safety net shredded Friday. Emergency buildings are wiped out. Bodies are stored in refrigerated trucks. Authorities are begging for such basics as flashlights. In one neighborhood, the storms even left firefighters to work without a truck.

Rash of tornadoes approaches 'super' status

Rash of tornadoes approaches 'super' status

WASHINGTON - Some of the killer tornadoes that ripped across the South may have been among the largest and most powerful ever recorded, expert…

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