KIRKSVILLE, Mo. (AP) - Violent storms that spawned at least one tornado raked northeastern Missouri on Wednesday evening, killing one person and damaging numerous buildings.

State Emergency Management Agency spokeswoman Susie Stonner said
the victim was an elderly woman in a mobile home in Sullivan County.

The city of Kirksville in neighboring Adair County apparently took the hardest hit. An auto dealership was damaged, and Stonner says three people were injured near the dealership when their car was blown off the road.

Kirksville police Det. Sgt. Ron Celian said about 30 to 40 homes were damaged and one destroyed at the north end of Kirksville.

A major north-south highway, U.S. 63, closed temporarily in the Kirksville area because of a gas-line leak and downed power lines.

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