Nine people dead after tornadoes hit U.S. Southeast

Nine people are dead after severe thunderstorms spawned tornadoes in the U.S. Southeast on Thursday. Alabama was one of the states hit the hardest. The death toll is expected to rise.

One of the counties that were the hardest hit was Autauga County where over 40 homes were damaged or destroyed. Of the nine fatalities, seven were in Autauga County.

The city of Selma was also badly hit.

In Georgia, two people died. A five-year-old child died when a tree fell on a car. An adult passenger was left in critical condition.

A passenger in another vehicle died when a tree fell on the vehicle in Jackson.

The storms knocked out power to over 20,000 people.

Severe thunderstorms are not expected through tonight.