The frantic search for survivors resumed in Alabama on Monday following a deadly cluster of tornadoes that ripped through the Southeast, leaving at least 23 people dead.
The victims are all from Beauregard in Lee County — and the death toll is only expected to rise, county Sheriff Jay Jones told “Good Morning America.”
“Homes completely destroyed, nothing left but the slabs — concrete slabs that they existed on,” he said.
Heat-seeking drones were scouring the hardest-hit areas for survivors overnight, but teams on the ground were waiting until Monday morning to begin their search.
“We’re going to concentrate on the areas that had the most damage,” Jones said. “We still have some individuals that are unaccounted for, and that’s where we’re going to begin our search this morning.”
Helicopters will be deployed to survey the damage, which Jones said could cover at least a square mile.
The funnel that tore through Lee County was an estimated EF3 that was at least a half-mile wide, the National Weather Service confirmed late Sunday.
F3 storms typically bring wind speeds of between 158 and 206 mph.
The National Weather Service said a more detailed assessment of the tornado’s strength will be conducted Monday.
Several tornadoes in a powerful storm system cut through Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina and Florida on Sunday.
The victims ranged in age from children to those in their 80s, Lee County Coroner Bill Harris said Sunday night, according to AL.com.