Make wishtv.com your home page

President Trump to visit tornado-ravaged Tennessee

Tennessee tornadoes update

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP/CNN) — President Donald Trump will visit disaster areas in Tennessee on Friday just days after storms that whipped across the state left 24 dead and many more injured.

Trump will be joined by Gov. Bill Lee, U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn and other top officials during his visit.

The White House says Trump approved a disaster declaration Thursday, making federal funding available to those affected by the tornadoes.

The White House hasn’t specified exactly where Trump will visit.

The first tornado began early Tuesday morning, creating a more than 50-mile trail of destruction. A second tornado then exploded through communities farther east of Nashville, causing most of the deaths.

An EF-4 tornado hit Putnam County, and an EF-3 tornado slammed Davidson and Wilson counties before dawn Tuesday, the National Weather Service confirmed Wednesday.

Survey teams had reported damage in East Nashville, Donelson and in Mt. Juliet, about 20 miles east of Nashville, as well as extensive damage in the Putnam County city of Cookeville, but the weather service had not finalized its assessment.

In East Nashville, residents had only a six-minute warning to get to safety, according to Davidson County authorities.

Tuesday was the deadliest tornado day since May 6, 2013, when a tornado struck Moore, Oklahoma, according to the weather service.