"outfront" tonight, breaking news in the midwest. death and destruction, more severe weather tonight, a series of tornados ripped through five states starting very, very early this morning. leaving a path of devastation in their wake. here is what we know at this moment. at least nine people so far confirmed dead. 100 are injured. more than 300 homes have been damaged or destroyed today and twisters touched down in kansas, missouri, illinois, indiana and kentucky. harrisburg, illinois was one of the hardest hit. the tornado hit just before 5:00 a.m. this morning. the mayor says despite the loss of life and property, his town will endure and he is "outfront" tonight. those images are stunning and disturbing. can you tell me when you found out about this? what you heard this morning when you woke up to this. >> well, actually this morning as the alarm was going off, sirens were going off about ten to 5:00, i woke up, got my family up. i went outside an was trying to assess where the tornado was coming at. you know, we had heard it was imminent and it was just a very eraerie feeling. the wind calmed, got very quiet and even during the sirens and you could hear the roar. immediately, the radio started going off saying the tornado was on the ground. just wreaking havoc on the southern part of the community and my son and i actually got in our -- in my vehicle and came out here and we were on the, we were here on the site within 20 minutes of the tornado coming through and it was just absolute devastation and this is just truly been a horrific day in harrisburg, illinois. the outpouring of support from our governor, from agencies, both federal, state and local, has just been tremendous. local communities have stepped up to help us today and you know, that's just something that i am so gracious and thankful for, is that everyone who has come to the rescue of harrisburg, illinois today. that speaks volumes to who we are as americans and hard working people in the midwest. >> as you were driving this morning, i'm sure what was going through your head, how many people have died or injured. obviously, people did die. have you accounted for everyone? do you know how many people exactly harrisburg has lost? >> we lost six of our citizens today. we actually lost two women and four men and we're just, it's a miracle that we didn't lose many, many more, but it's heartbreaking that we've lost the six we did lose. this was an f4 tornado with 170 mile winds, so it was just devastating and certainly, a horrific day in the history of harrisburg, illinois. this is the worst event that we have ever had this this community. >> and it seems like you were saying what happened, you went out, you didn't stay home. you went to the scene even as you heard the alarms. >> well, you know, i like to think that i'm, i represent a people, we're all alike. we don't run away from trouble. we run to it and see if we can help. it's been all hands on deck. i cannot begin to thank all the people, all the city workers that have been at this and will be at this for days to come. all of the emergency personnel and all the communities that have pitched in. all the neighboring communities. the neighboring community rocky james, the mayor there. he immediately sent his staff, his people to the city. they were here within the hour. so we actually assembled an army to try to deal with this devastating event here in harrisburg today and we're getting our hands around it and we're going to make sure that everyone is safe and those b that have been displaced, they have a place to stay tonight. they're going to be taken care of. they're going to have food, water, whatever they need. this is a community and an area that takes care of their own and we're going to rise to the occasion. we will rebuild this and we will be back. this is, you get knocked down, we're the kind of, we believe in getting back up and fighting hard to come back and that's what we're going to do. we just, our hearts are broken for those we lost and those that are injured and we just ask that everyone prays, keeps us in their thoughts and prayers. >> let me ask you about that warning system because some may be surprised there are warning systems. do you think the warning system worked? do you think it saved lives in harrisburg? >> oh, most definitely. it definitely saves lives. the warning system was going off here several minutes before the tornado hit. i talked to eyewitnesses out here in the area where it came through and they said that they did hear, they heard the sirens going off. they heard the tornado comeing and they did have time to take shelter with their loved ones, so the warning system saved many, many lives, but it's just very fortunate that during the time of the morning that this tornado came through, people aren't talking on their cell phones, aren't watching televisi television, aren't listening to the radio, therefore the communication we're so accustomed to during the daylight hours didn't play into this at night and it's very heartbreaking that we lost loved ones we might not have lost if this would have been in a different time of the day. >> thank you very much. the best of luck. you're a mayor, also a marketing executive. you are putting a lot aside to do this. so thank you very much for coming on. the tornado that ripped through illinois was an ef4, that is the second strongest tornado on the trail. 166 to 200 miles an hour. this one clocked in at 170 miles an hour and the path of destruction can be seen from kansas to kentucky. now, this man, you'll see, was in his trailer home in greenville, r kentucky when the tornado hit. >> and i got up and took two steps off the couch and then me and two dogs i have and the trailer started rolling down the hill and you can see what's left. and after i rolled five times, i mean i can remember everything about it, once it hit the ground on the fifth time, everything just, i saw daylight and i was sitting up against the stove down there just leaned up with my back against it, like i was sitting in a chair. joy to be here. because i don't know how. i don't know how i'm here. no doubt. good lord just didn't call me is all i know. wasn't my time. >> residents in harrisburg, illinois, as we were telling you, six of them died. four men and two women and many are still in the process of digging out. >> it's unbelievable. i can't believe the measure of damage it did to this building. it's like there was just no truckture and it just took it completely out. it's total devastation. i've not ever seen anything like it. i'm just glad that it happened at night and no one was at work. this would be horrible for people who have been in this building when that happened. >> the tornado that came through harrisburg was as wide as two football fields and it levelled a strip mall and tore the walls oaf a hospital. sandy webster is the red cross coordinator in southern illinois. appreciate your taking the time and given what we have just heard an seen with the hospital there, do you have the ability to take care of people that need help? >> absolutely. we geared up as soon as we got the call this morning at 6:30. we opened our shelter at 7:00 and it is open there for people to come to safety tonight and stay there. they can also get food there. in our crisis counselors are there. as well as a nurse. >> how did you mobilize so quickly? i think many people will watch this and say the alarms go off, 5:00 a.m. and here we are, 14 hours later and you've got food, medical care and shelter. it is incredible how quickly that could have happened. >> well, we had red cross volunteers on the ground that live here in this community. just right outside and so they were the first two ladies that opened up the shulter. so that helps and they're all trained. our shelters are predesigned, so we know kind of depending on where the disaster is, what shelters we will use and so we can just call them and say i need your shelter, we'll be there in an hour. so a lot is preplanning. the same with our trailer rs that have the cots and trailers. >> harrisburg is a city of 9,000 people. how many people do you have in shelters tonight? >> right now, we had 12 that was registered. today, people wanted especially after a tornado, they want to try to salvage as much they can. those precious photo albums that you can't replace and those type of things. tonight, later on, they will start coming in, which is about the way that it happens in a tornado like this. so, at midnight, we take another count to see how many ends up there after 8:00. >> thank you very much. we appreciate it. >> you're quite welcome. >> you hear about the devastation in harrisburg. but this went through five states and the tornado season itself usually begins in march. this particular storm system that we're seeing today is wreaking havoc as it continues to make its way across the country towards the east coast. there are people know who are at ricks of being affected or feeling these storms. chad myers is here with the latest. how unusual is this that this is so, i mean, it's a few days before march and how strong? >> typically, you will get storms in february. but maybe not ef4 tornados with those storms. march is the battleground, erin. it's when winter finally has to move away. summer has to move up. when the warm and cold bump into each other, that's spring saying come on, we want to push your back and trying to push that cold air back to canada. that's when the clash happens and causes storms, causing tornados. from philadelphia to d.c., we're seeing showers. a little thunder, but not severe, tornadic weather. we have a couple of red boxes from western virginia to mississippi. that's where the tornados may happen tonight. let me tell you this. i'm not going to scare anybody with this, but last night wasn't that unusual. it really wasn't a very unusual night. 10, 15 tornados on the ground and for a march day, night, that's not that much. i want you to figure out here. here's the town of harrisburg. 9,000 people. about a mile and a half wide. about a mile and a half tall. let me zoom you out and show you what would have happened had this tornado been one-half a mile left or right. there are miles and miles of farmland, both ways, 50 miles both sides of this town, there is just farmland. farm stands may have been hit, but not cities. the deal with last night is that towns got in the way of the tornados that are typically not in the middle of towns. so branson got in the way and harrisburg got in the way. an ef4 that runs through a big farm field, knocks over some irrigation wells, a couple of things, cows run away. that's it. we don't have weather like this, we don't have a night like this with coverage on cnn with i would say once out of every 20 times this would happen, it happens tonight when a town literally gets in the way. >> wow. amazing perspective. thank you very much. referring to branson, missouri. the mayor of branson is going to be with us in just a couple of moments. more of our breaking news coverage of the tornados today. medical centers, churches danielled, but open. we're going to talk to the people helping their communities through the crisis. as i said, we're going to branson, another community that has been devastated. also, the teen in ohio accused of a school shooting. we have new information tonight about what was in his juvenile background. we're going to share that with you and talk to the relatives of one of the victims. the other office devices? 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[whispering] big dreams. the weather service sent out a storm warning alert in the harrisburg, illinois area as early as 4:30 a.m. this morning and the tornados touched down less than 30 minutes later. most people were sound asleep including caleb, he received a call from the alarm company that monitors the store where he works. at first, he thought the company was calling about a break-in, but the store is now gone. caleb is "outfront" tonight and thank you very much for taking the time. tell me what happened this morning. >> this morning, i was sitting on the couch with my girlfriend and our newborn and got the phone call from the alarm company and got the call. they said there had been like a break-in of sorts. i rushed to town. i had heard the thunder and everything. didn't think it was that serious. the alarms hasn't sounded in el derado yet. i drove to harrisburg as fast as i could. i could see lightning in the background. there was cops, ambulances flying by me. when i pulled in here to walmart, i saw walmart standing, but when i looked to the right at our complex, i saw that it was completely gone and i was just at a loss for words. >> what went through your head when you saw that and i'm sure one of your thoughts was that it could have happened when you were there. >> it definitely could have happened during the daytime. i don't want to say that i'm thankful it happened when it did because a lot of people were not warned it was coming. more breathtaking than seeing the complex itself was seeing the devastation behind walmart. i know a lot of people that live back there. it's a sad sight. you see it on tv and think it's never going to happen until your town until it does. it's a gut check is what it is. it's unbelievable. >> friends in that area, relatives in t town, is everyone accounted for and okay? >> as far as i am aware, everyone that i knew back there, i have heard from or have heard that they are okay, so i'm definitely thanking god for that to be the. >> all right. thank you very much. we appreciate you taking the time and glad that you're safe and sound and be back home with his little baby tonight. branson, missouri was one of the towns hit before 1:00 a.m. this is a country music resort down if you're not familiar with it. it's in southwest missouri and more than 30 people in branson were injured. on the phone now, the mayor. thank you very much for taking the time to be with us. tell me what happened to you this morning and when you found out and whether the warning system worked in branson? >> fortunately, it did work in branson. as you may know, we are fairly close to joplin, missouri and i think our residents have been watching and paying more attention than we might have in years past and so, we had watched the storms develop in the late afternoon and our sirens went off at an appropriate time before the storm hit. so i believe that saved many lives and kept people safe. >> i know your city relies on tourism. i've seen numbers of $2 billion a year coming into your economy. obviously, that central area appears to be incredibly damaged. what does that do to branson coming into tourist season? >> we are a few weeks away from the start of our spring season. fortunately, while the some of the images are quite disturbing and we have had some theatres and hotels damaged, the vast majority of our attractions such as silver dollar city and titanic are open for business and are undamaged or only slightly damaged. we have been very blessed. >> certainly a city synonymous with tornados now. joplin. but obviously, a fellow town in missouri. did anyone from joplin reach out to you today? >> they did. i heard just this afternoon that ten police officers were coming over to help us this evening, kind of make certain our areas were secure in a kind of paying it forward. our fire department were some of the very first responders on the scene at joplin the night they were hit. of course, they had such a loss of life and it was such a tragedy for our state and we've been fortunate while we have about 30 people who have had mild to moderate injuries, our tornado was not as severe and certainly not as severe as harrisburg. >> thank you so much for coming "outfront" tonight. we have more of our breaking news coverage of the deadly storms across the midwest today. we are joined by someone who lost a loved one in the tornado in harrisburg, illinois. and the united states today made a deal with north korea. that's next. i have hemorrhoids and yes, i have constipation. that's why i take colace. 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[ male announcer ] we didn't have to make safety features like active head restraints, brake assist, and an enhanced accident-response system standard in every chrysler 200. no one would know if we didn't. but we would have. and for us, the things you do when no one is looking are the things that define you. ♪ tornados moving across five states in the midwest today. we can tell you right now tornados are touching down in tennessee. we have a death in dekalb county. in harrisburg, illinois, the hardest hit town. six people died today. four men and two women. with the 170 mile an hour storm touching down as those storms continue to move eastward tonight. at least ten are dead after the series of tornados ripped through as five states now in tennessee, the sixth. touching down in kansas, missouri, illinois, indiana, kentucky and now, tennessee. harrisburg, illinois, as i mentioned, the hardest hit so far. a community of about 9,000 people and was struck by a 170 mile ef4 at 5:00 a.m. this morning. don lemon is now in harrisburg and what are you seeing? >> it's unbelievable when you drive through because as you know and as people have seen, when these kinds of events happen, you won't see any damage for miles and miles and miles, then you'll drive up on damage. i didn't see much on my drive up from st. louis, but it was very windy. i want to get you as close as i can to this. i had been told this hibbet sports. the entire thing is just destroyed. you can see the giant pillars that stand in front of this building and some that held it up. and check this out. the get this big cement over the winds have to be going just ferociously here. i'm going to show you around. bear with me. look at the reporters and people here lined up really from all over the country. keep going left here, past this light. this is a giant, one of those super walmarts, erin, that you see in small towns. that is closed. don't know what the extent of the damage is there. but imagine if it had been during the middle of the day when people were in this giant shopping center, but again, i'm told this is a retail town and a medical town and driving through here, it's really an oasis in the middle of nowhere. for miles and miles and miles, it's just farmland or flat land, then you get into these towns. you see a red light, then retail shopping centers and fast food joints and what have you. that's what we have here. the nearest town, a couple of miles away from