Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick and the state\'s two US senators toured damaged parts of their northeastern US state Thursday after tornadoes killed at least four people when they hit region.
Patrick declared the state of emergency Wednesday after twisters struck central and western Massachusetts. He also called up 1,000 National Guard soldiers to help in the rescue and clean up effort.
Patrick, joined by the two US Massachusetts senators, Democrat John Kerry and Republican Scott Brown, toured Springfield and Monson, the two urban areas hardest-hit by the twisters.
In the city of Springfield, a tornado tore through the downtown area, knocking down trees, shattering windows, shearing off building roofs and overturning vehicles. The twister tore the roof off a community center and ripped off the side of a building, raining bricks on vehicles parked nearby.
In the town of Monson, several homes had their sides torn off, and the First Church of Monson\'s tall steeple was knocked down and shredded.
"Natural disasters of such magnitude do not often occur in our state, and I was deeply saddened to learn of the loss of life," Brown said in a statement.
The governor "will bring whatever state resources to bear necessary to ensure the safety of all Massachusetts residents," Patrick\'s state of emergency declaration said.
Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency spokesman Scott MacLeod earlier told AFP that the severity and magnitude of the Wednesday tornadoes "is unprecedented" in the state.
"On an annual basis, we expect to see one, two or three tornado watches or warnings but certainly the impacts we\'ve seen as a result of today tornadoes is extremely severe," he said, confirming the four deaths.
About 20 communities throughout the state reported tornado touchdowns, MacLeod said.
The tornadoes came just over a week after a massive funnel cloud struck the Missouri town of Joplin, killing 134 in one of the worst tornado strikes to hit the United States.
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KATALOG FIRM W INTERNECIE
