At least five dead from tornadoes in central USA

At least five people were killed when tornadoes swept through the central United States, destroying buildings and a gas station that provided shelter to dozens of people.

Severe storms formed over Texas and Oklahoma on Saturday night; Cooke County, north of Dallas, was among the worst affected areas.

Local Sheriff Ray Sappington said the death toll from the storms is expected to be even higher.

“We are currently still in search and rescue mode. I hope we can still find survivors,” he told local media.

Footage broadcast by local media showed a petrol station that was almost completely destroyed, littered with damaged vehicles and twisted metal.

The storms overturned trucks and closed a highway near Dallas.

The National Weather Service issued tornado warnings on Saturday for parts of Texas and Oklahoma, a region already gripped by extreme heat.

The central plains of the United States are also known as Tornado Alley. Due to their location and climate, they are particularly vulnerable to some of the most destructive tornadoes in the world.

May is usually the month of the year with the most severe tornadoes.