Severe storms and tornadoes have ripped across the US state of Tennessee, shredding at least 40 buildings, causing severe damage in the state capital and killing at least 19 people, officials said on Tuesday.The storms hit in the early hours of Tuesday morning, blowning down walls and roofs, snapping power lines and bring down huge trees.
The death toll jumped to 19 on Tuesday, Tennessee Emergency Management Spokeswoman Maggie Hannan said, after police and fire crews spent hours pulling survivors and bodies from wrecked buildings.
