Tornado sirens wail in ominous Illinois storm footage

Lightning flashes and thunder rumbles while ominous sirens echo during tornado storms in Illinois.

Footage captures the tornado moving into the Rockford suburb of Belvidere on Friday (March 31) after sirens were sounded to alert residents of the powerful storm due to hit.

It comes as at least 26 people have been killed after a series of tornadoes tore through towns and cities in the south and midwest of the United States.

Homes, shopping centres and theatres were shredded and destroyed, resulting in thousands being left without power after storms caused devastation across several states.

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