DEADLY STORM SYSTEM BARRELS ACROSS THE U.S.A

Overall, there were reports of 69 tornadoes across eight states including Arkansas, Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee, Iowa, Illinois, and Wisconsin, according to the National Weather Service. More than 400,000 homes and businesses were without power as of 7 a.m. EDT Saturday, according to poweroutage.us.

Power Outages across the midwest

Homes were ripped off their foundations, storefronts shattered, vehicles tossed like Matchbox cars and, in Belvidere, Illinois, the roof of a theater collapsed during a concert, killing one person and injuring 28.

Seven people died in Tennessee’s McNairy County. At least five people lost their lives in Arkansas, where there was extensive damage in the Little Rock metro area. Two deaths were reported in Crawford County, Illinois, and three were confirmed in Indiana’s Sullivan County. One person died in Madison County in northern Alabama and one in Pontotoc County, Mississippi.

Coralville, Iowa tornado damage

The toll appeared to be highest in Arkansas, where officials in Pulaski County announced a confirmed fatality in North Little Rock. There were also four deaths in Wynne, Arkansas. At least 40 people were injured in the Little Rock area, and five of them were in critical condition.

O​ne person was also killed when the roof collapsed at the Apollo Theatre in Belvidere, Illinois. Two others died in Illinois, three deaths were confirmed in Indiana, and one in Alabama. Dozens of homes have been wiped out, storefronts destroyed and vehicles, including semitrailers, tossed like toys.

The storms were part of an outbreak of severe thunderstorms that took aim at a wide area of the Midwest and South.

This follows massive earthquakes that have killed thousands of people in Turkey and Syria and previously in Haiti in 2020 and 2021.

A magnitude 7.8 earthquake kills up to 5,000 people across Turkey and Syria

The most powerful earthquake in nearly a century struck Turkey and Syria on Monday morning (afternoon AEDT), levelling buildings and causing tremors felt as far away as Greenland. It was quickly followed by a powerful 7.6 quake and dozens of after-shocks that wiped out entire sections of major Turkish cities in a region filled with millions who have fled the civil war in Syria and other conflicts.

A global food crisis

Conflict, economic shocks, climate extremes, and soaring fertilizer prices are combining to create a food crisis of unprecedented proportions. As many as 828 million people are unsure of where their next meal is coming from. We have a choice: act now to save lives and invest in solutions that secure food security, stability, and peace for all, or see people around the world facing rising hunger.

An expected 345.2 million people are projected to be food insecure in 2023 – more than double the number in 2020. This constitutes a staggering rise of 200 million people compared to pre-COVID-19 pandemic levels. More than 900,000 people worldwide are fighting to survive in famine-like conditions. This is ten times more than five years ago, an alarmingly rapid increase. An immediate response is needed. The global community promised to end hunger and malnutrition by 2030. 

Signs of the End of the Age

“There will be earthquakes in various places; there will be famines. These are but the beginning of the birth pains.” Mark 13:8b

“There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these are but the beginning of the birth pains.” Matthew 24:7

“There will be great earthquakes, and in various places famines and pestilences.“ Luke 21:11

The Coming of the Son of Man

“Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Then will appear in heaven the sign of the Son of Man, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And he will send out his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.” Matthew 24:29-31