Tornadoes killed Mother and toddler in Tennessee
Neighbours say Floriderma Perez, 31, was found clutching her son Anthony after the storm swept through their mobile home near Nashville.
At least six people were killed, as heavy winds reduced buildings to rubble and caused widespread blackouts.
The extreme weather triggered a state of emergency in Tennessee.
Ms Perez and her son were killed along with their neighbour Joseph Dalton, 37, police said. All three lived in a northern suburb of Nashville, the state's capital.
Neighbour Wanda McClemor told local news outlet Channel 5 that she and others had stepped out to look for the child and his mother, after the tornado had picked up one of the mobile homes in their area and flipped it on top of another.
"You could hear them calling for help. But by the time we got out here, there were people already trying to get to them," Ms McClemor said.
She said Ms Perez and her son's bodies were eventually found, with the mother's arms wrapped tightly around the toddler.
"They said they couldn't find her because she was holding him, trying to protect the baby," Ms McClemor said.
Ms Perez's seven-year-old son and Mr Dalton's 10-year-old son suffered non-life threatening injuries, authorities said.
Two more adults and a child were also killed in the city of Clarksville, around 50 miles (80km) to the north-west of Nashville.
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