Terrifying storm devastates part of the US: Tornado rampaged for 15 minutes, taking five lives (VIDEO)

At least five people were killed and an unknown number of people were injured in the strike of a powerful tornado in the southeastern part of the US state of Missouri, local authorities announced.

A tornado caused significant destruction in and around the small rural communities of Glen Allen and Grassy, confirmed Casey A. Graham, Bollinger County Sheriff, in a post on his office's Facebook account, AP reports.

Sheriff Graham wrote that at least five people died, Tanjug reports.

According to the National Weather Service, a tornado hit Missouri at around 3:30 AM local time.

Justin Gibbs, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service, said that the tornado remained on the ground for approximately 15 minutes, traveling between 25 and 35 kilometers.

The Storm Prediction Center has announced that up to 40 million people are in an area at risk of storms later today, Sky News reports.

A team from the meteorological service is on their way to Bollinger County to gather details about the tornado. Gibbs emphasized that it was a „strong tornado.“.

He claims that tornadoes are especially dangerous when they touch down in an area late at night or early in the morning, Index.hr reports.

„That is definitely a nightmare from a warning perspective. It was bad whenever, but it's especially bad at 3:30 AM,“ he added.

SOURCE: NOVA PHOTO: NOVA