MADISON, Tenn. – At least six people were killed, including children, when a series of tornadoes ripped through portions of Tennessee on Saturday, and the true scope of the devastation was known when the Sun rose on Sunday.
FOX Weather Correspondent Nicole Valdes got a firsthand look at the destruction left behind when the powerful tornadoes tore through the communities of Madison and Clarksville on Sunday.
She also spoke with survivors who described the terrifying moment the severe weather pushed through.
TORNADOES UNLEASH DEADLY TERROR IN TENNESSEE WITH CHILDREN AMONG THOSE KILLED IN SEVERE STORMS
Valdes first toured the hard-hit Nashville community of Madison, which saw significant damage from the tornado.
Images she shared show several homes in the area that suffered extensive damage, such as roofs that were blown off.
In addition, large sections of walls were pulled away from buildings, which exposed bedrooms and living rooms and sent furniture flying inside.
VIDEOS SHOW TORNADO THAT BARRELED THROUGH CLARKSVILLE, TENNESSEE
Valdes also spoke with survivors of the storm who described to her the moment they realized trouble was ahead.
“The scary thing about this is I really didn’t know, until about 25 or 30 minutes before, about what was going on,” Kiera Scognamiglio said. “So, I went to my neighbor, she has a crawl space. We all went down in there.”
She said as they huddled in the crawl space for protection, nothing could be heard. So they didn’t know what was happening.
“We didn’t know if it had hit us,” she said. “We had no idea.”
Valdes said she also spoke to another woman who said she was taking a shower when she received a text message from her boyfriend warning of the imminent tornado threat.
She told Valdes she was able to quickly run and get dressed and seek shelter in a closet. She then described feeling the house shake and feel the walls being ripped apart.
WHAT YOU SHOULD DO IF YOUR PROPERTY SUSTAINED TORNADO DAMAGE
Valdes then traveled to Clarksville, Tennessee, in Montgomery County, where officials say three people, including a child, were killed by an EF-3 tornado.
She arrived at a community of townhomes that received significant damage from the storm.
The photos she shared show roofs completely torn from the building, exposing furniture inside.
Other photos show volunteers working to sift through the rubble to salvage what they could.
Power remains out in the area, and county officials say it could be days before power is restored.