Tornado Rips Monroe Airport

The airport at Monroe, Louisiana, took a direct hit from a powerful tornado late Sunday morning. Photos from the airport show flattened hangars and other buildings and aircraft strewn among the wreckage. The damage prompted officials to close the airport until further notice. One photo showed at least four business jets damaged or destroyed. Some buildings were toppled by the winds while the structures of others remained standing and the siding and insulation was peeled away. Three airlines serve the airport.

The tornado was part of a dangerous line of storms sweeping the South that has prompted warnings and watches from Louisiana to Georgia. More than 95 million people are under the warnings and the storm system is expected to move up the east coast as far north as Virginia by Monday morning.